UofL Transfer Target Emoni Bates to Decide Future by 'End of this Month'

The former Memphis Tiger has been heavily linked to the Cardinals since entering the transfer portal.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - It looks like the recruitment for former Memphis forward and Louisville men's basketball transfer target Emoni Bates will soon be coming to an end.

Speaking on Instagram Live Wednesday, Bates revealed that he would be finally making a decision on his transfer destination "by the end of this month (June)."

The 6-foot-9, 190-pound wing entered the transfer portal after one year at Memphis back in mid-April, then announced a top six of Louisville, Michigan, DePaul, Arkansas, Seton Hall and Eastern Michigan a couple weeks later.

The Cardinals quickly emerged as the perceived frontrunner for Bates, with multiple crystal ball predictions for Louisville pouring in across sites like 247Sports, Rivals and On3.

However, on May 10, college basketball insider Adam Zagoria reported that he was told "not to expect any news on Emoni Bates' future plans until mid-June." That deadline has since passed, and Bates' future plans have been cloudy at best.

Michigan made a surge in his recruitment recently after Caleb Houston opted to stay in the NBA Draft, and other schools like Illinois and Kansas State have reportedly made a run at him as well. Louisville is still very much in the mix, but is no longer considering the consensus for his landing spot.

Bates was the consensus No. 1 player in the Class of 2022, but opted to reclassify to the 2021 class. He was once committed to Michigan State before decommitting and enrolling at Memphis after his reclassification.

He had an up-and-down freshman campaign with the Tigers. He opened the 2021-22 season scoring double figures in three straight games, only to reach that mark five times the rest of the year. He averaged 9.7 points and 3.3 rebounds over 18 total games and 13 starts, but also shot 38.6 percent from the field and had 42 turnovers to 23 assists.

The Ypsilanti, Mich. native missed the final nine games of the regular season and Memphis' three games in the AAC Tournament due to a lower back injury, even going back home to seek a second opinion. He came off the bench in the Tigers' two NCAA Tournament games against Boise State and Gonzaga, totaling eight points in 15 minutes played.

Louisville has just six returners from the 2021-22 season, a year where they went 13-19 for their first losing season in over two decades, and mutually separated with head coach Chris Mack. Sydney Curry, El Ellis, Mike James, Jae'Lyn Withers, J.J. Traynor and Roosevelt Wheeler all announced that they would return for next season.

Since being hired by the university on Mar. 18, new head coach Kenny Payne has slowly started to add to the Cardinals' 2022-23 roster. He added Tennessee transfer Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and 2022 prospect Devin Ree, while also getting longtime commit Kamari Lands to sign his Letter of Intent.

(Photo of Emoni Bates: Joe Rondone / USA TODAY NETWORK)

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