The Louisville Cardinals and head coach Pat Kelsey have landed a surprising recruit for the 2026-27 season former G League guard London Johnson, as per Jeff Goodman of The Field of 68. The commitment is the second such move of this offseason as earlier this month Santa Clara received a commitment from Thierry Darlan who also played in the G League.
When Darlan committed to Santa Clara, he was granted two years of eligibility from the NCAA. While details of London Johnson’s commitment to Louisville were not immediately available, Goodman suggested that the G League guard would also have two years of eligibility.
It’s an unprecedented move for the NCAA considering both Johnson and Darlan have already played professional basketball. Both players had opted to bypass college basketball and join the G League Ignite to jump start their NBA dreams.
But following the 2023-24 season, the NBA opted to shut down the Ignite, leaving players like Johnson and Darlan without a team. They both latched on to other G League teams where they have been playing since.
Johnson spent last season splitting time between the Maine Celtics and the Cleveland Charge, the G League affiliates of the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers, respectively. He appeared in a total of 28 games at a little over 13 minutes per game. He averaged 3.2 points, 1.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists with splits of 35.6 percent shooting from the field, 39 percent shooting from the three-point line and 75 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
His 2024-25 season was a far cry from his first two years in the G League playing for the Ignite when he averaged double figures in points and shot over 40 percent from the field.
But in the meantime, Louisville will focus on the 2025-26 season as they await Johnson’s arrival a year from now. Louisville made the NCAA Tournament last year, their first season under Kelsey, for the first time in five seasons. The Cardinals’ 27-8 record was also their best mark since 2019-20 when they went 24-7.
