Louisville has jumped into the race for Kentucky basketball target Jaxon Kohler, adding another layer to a late-summer transfer battle that already had plenty of familiar names attached to it.
Kentucky began pursuing the Michigan State fifth-year transfer on August 1, after the news of the class of 2022’s updated eligibility and fifth-year option. When Jon Rothstein first reported Kentucky’s interest, the other schools mentioned in the chase were BYU and Kansas.
Now Louisville is in the picture too. On August 11, Rothstein reported that the Cardinals had entered the mix, with Pat Kelsey and his staff finding enough money to make a run at the forward.
Kohler looks like the kind of player Kelsey would want. He brings the physical presence Louisville is trying to add, and he’s also shown he can score from the outside. At Michigan State under Tom Izzo, Kohler shot 38.9% on just over four 3-point attempts per game in his final season, which makes him a natural fit for the kind of up-tempo offense Kelsey likes to play.
For Kentucky, the appeal is obvious too. Kohler sits near the top of the transfer list for Mark Pope and his staff as they try to strengthen the roster for the 2026-27 season.
The battle also fits a pattern between Pope and Kelsey. Over the last two years, the two programs have gone head-to-head on a number of recruits, including Taylen Kinney, Gabe Dynes, and Milan Momcilovic. Louisville won the race for Dynes, while Kentucky came out ahead for Momcilovic, and neither school landed Kinney.
Kohler’s other options would each come with their own sting for Kentucky. A return to BYU would bring him back home and would follow the Rob Wright III situation in the early portal days.
A move to Kansas would land him with another school Kentucky has already tangled with in the Tyran Stokes saga. And if he ends up at Louisville, that would send him to Kentucky’s in-state rival.
For now, the field is still open. But Kentucky, BYU, Kansas, and now Louisville are all in the hunt for one of the more coveted late additions in the portal.
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