By Justin Renck and Steve Rummage:
In our basketball recruiting notebook, we fill you in on where the Cards stand with their top targets in the class of 2015. The Cards gained their third commit for 2015 this week, and possibly have one more target in mind. Enjoy this week’s notebook!
Point Guard
Donovan Mitchell (Commit) – Rick Pitino got his guy when PG Donovon Mitchell announced he had committed to Louisville. Mitchell gave his commitment to the Cards this past weekend while on campus for his official visit. While Mitchell cut his list to 5 last week, the 6’3 PG told Steve Jones of the Courier Journal he “had been set on committing to U of L for about the last two weeks”. In the same article, Mitchell told Jones, “I had a dream I was playing in front of 22,000 (at the KFC Yum! Center), and that’s when I told my parents that I want to commit to Louisville.” Mitchell’s commitment to Louisville drew high praise from people around the country, including the ACC Sports Journal who tweeted this about the Cards 2015 class, “With Deng Adel, Raymond Spalding, and Donovan Mitchell locked in, Louisville may have the top 2015 class in the ACC. Pitino getting it done”. This week Donovan Mitchell was also named to the Elite 24 game held on August 23rd in Brooklyn. Look for Mitchell to vault up the updated rankings in the coming weeks. -Steve Rummage
Isaiah Briscoe – Last week, Briscoe cut his list down to 5 schools, and the Cards did not make the list. His top 5 is now Arizona, Rutgers, Seton Hall, St. John’s and Villanova. He will now be removed from the weekly notebook. -Justin Renck
PJ Dozier – Since cutting his list to five last week, (Louisville, UNC, South Carolina, Georgtown, and Michigan) I would go as far to say that Dozier now sits at the top of Rick Pitino’s wish list. At 6’6, (6’7 according to his father) Dozier is an extremely explosive athlete and possesses all the tools to fit in the defensive mentality of the Cards. Pitino isn’t the only one who would like to see Dozier in a Louisville uniform though. New Louisville commit Donovan Mitchell tweeted this after his commitment, “#CardNation let’s do everything we can to get my bro @Dozier_Kid to come join the Louisville family!! Let’s get this done!! #L1C4″ then later “#DoziertoTheVille“. Dozier plans to visit the Cards on September 1st, but what will the South Carolina native be looking for? Dozier’s Father told SportsTalkSC.com that making an impact right away, playing the right position (PG/SG), the team’s player development, and “Most importantly” the coach will be the biggest factors in making a college decision. Going by that criteria and the fact Dozier will be here for the Miami game, I would say things looks pretty good for the Cards. The hometown Gamecocks and the nearby Tar Heels may be hard to fight off but I expect PJ Dozier to be the next and final commit for Louisville. -Steve Rummage
Shooting Guard
Antonio Blakeney – Not much has changed since last week on our stance on Blakeney. For a while, we assumed Louisville was the leader and that he really wanted to be here. The more time that passes, the more I am backing off of that. With Prince Ali and P.J. Dozier visiting soon, I would call them the top targets for Pitino if he does take another player in this class. If something changes and Blakeney is suddenly back in play as a realistic option, we will make a post about it. Until then, my top two predictions for Blakeney are Kentucky and LSU. -Justin Renck
Prince Ali – This still looks like a Louisville/UCLA race with UCLA in a slight lead. Ali will vist UCLA on August 30th and still plans to see Louisville on September 6th. I still find it interesting that the staff has asked PJ Dozier to come in one week before Ali, but if Pitino and company dont lock up Dozier on September 1st, keep a close eye on Ali. -Steve Rummage
Dwayne Bacon – Bacon participated in the “Big Strick Classic” this week along with some of the top guys in high school basketball. The 6’3 SG impressed everyone scoring 58 points in the scrimmage then adding 30 in the game itself. Bacon is an incredible scorer, but at this point I think he is behind Dozier, Blakeney, and Ali on the Cards list. Bacon will cut his list soon and if the Cards get into the month of September without a committment from one of the other 3 guys, look for Bacon to move up that list. -Steve Rummage
Small Forward
Deng Adel (Commit)- Adel finished his summer off strong at the Adidas Nations last week. Even though his commitment is solid, Adel could visit Louisville for the Miami football game. Adel will most likely land in most rankings top 15 when its all said and done. -Steve Rummage
Derrick Jones – Not much has changed in the last couple of weeks for Derrick Jones. He still has plans to visit Louisville, along with Kentucky, Indiana, Kansas, and Auburn. He has already visited UConn. Since there is still a visit planned, you never know if something may happen. But with Deng Adel and Donovan Mitchell already committed, and Pitino’s heavy focus on other players, I don’t see Derrick Jones ending up at Louisville. -Justin Renck
Power Forward
Raymond Spalding (Commit)- Raymond Spalding’s AAU season is over and he will now prepare for this upcoming season at Trinity High School. Look for Spalding to continue to rise up the rankings as the season goes on. -Steve Rummage
