Roosevelt Wheeler has made the decision to return to UofL. Wheeler joined UofL as a freshman in 2021. He’s originally from Richmond, VA. Coming out of high school he was a 4 Star prospect.
— Rose (@z4rose) April 22, 2022
Wheeler is a 6’10 220 lbs F/C that chose UofL over NC State, LSU, Miami, and others. He was ranked 79th overall and 14th at his position by 247sports. An Achilles injury caused him to miss some time in high school.
Wheeler played sparingly last year for the Cards. He only averaged 1.6 ppg and 1.7 rpg. However, he often times played behind senior captain Malik Williams. He also suffered a concussion that cost him some playing time and he was likely still working his way back from the Achilles injury. However, he displayed some excellent skill and effort in his limited minutes.
In high school, Wheeler was a guy who did all his damage offensively down low with dunks and layups. He also displayed a nice right handed hook shot. He has excellent footwork as well. Defensively, his length should be difficult for defenders to score over. I suspect he will be asked to attempt more blocked shots than he would’ve been under the previous staff.
Getting Roosevelt Wheeler back is huge because of the size and skill he brings on the block. After the debacle of last season, I will be interested to see him develop under Coach Payne and Coach Manning; two coaches known for their ability to develop bigs. I suspect he will see much more playing time and we fans will get to see him truly make a giant leap.
