UofL Basketball announced that the captains for the upcoming season will be junior G/F V.J. King and grad transfer Christen Cunningham.
As voted on by their teammates…
Your 2018-19 Louisville Basketball Captains: @yocunningham & @vjking_ #GoCards pic.twitter.com/Kt0W0oGToZ
— Louisville Basketball (@LouisvilleMBB) August 21, 2018
Big things are expected from King as he has completely transformed his body and appears primed for a big junior year under the tutelage of his new coach Chris Mack.
Cunningham, a grad transfer from Samford, is a prototypical PG. He’s a quick, pass-first, facilitator. Cunningham will likely be relied upon heavily by Coach Mack due to his experience and leadership abilities.
Both captains were chosen by vote of their teammates. You can read the full press release below which includes more information about the captains.
PRESS RELEASE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT:
Cunningham, King Named UofL Men’s Basketball Captains
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — University of Louisville graduate guard Christen Cunningham and junior guard/forward V.J. King were selected as team captains for the 2018-19 men’s basketball season by a vote of their teammates.
“Both Christen and V.J. earned the right of being named captains,” said UofL Head Coach Chris Mack. “They put in an awful lot of work this off season and hold the respect of all their teammates, so it wasn’t all that surprising they were named. It’s quite an honor for the two of them leading the Louisville Cardinals this season.“
A 6-6, 195-pound junior from Cleveland, Ohio, King is UofL’s lone returning starter from last year’s 22-14 unit that reached the quarterfinals of the NIT. King was a starter at shooting guard in all 36 games for the Cardinals, scoring in double figures in 14 games, including seven of the last 16 and nine of the last 20.
A two-time All-ACC Academic Men’s Basketball Team selection, King was fourth on the team in scoring with an 8.6 average and was sixth on the team in three-point field goal percentage (.320). He scored a season-high 17 points against Purdue and Memphis last year and scored a career-high 24 points against Virginia as a freshman.
Cunningham transferred to UofL for his final collegiate season after starting three years at Samford University. The 6-2, 190-pound guard from Lexington, Ky., ranks 13th on Samford’s all-time scoring list with 1,283 career points and his 514 career assists is a school record. In each of his three full seasons, he produced at least 125 assists, 100 free throws, 30 steals and averaged double-digits in scoring.
Cunningham scored in double figures in 71 games at Samford, including 11 contests with 20 or more points. He handed out at least five assists on 51 occasions, including 14 games with eight or more assists. He had a career-high 13 assists against Nicholls State on Nov. 27, 2016.
