Louisville Transfer Target Malachi Smith Commits to Gonzaga

The former Chattanooga shooting guard has made his transfer decision.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Stemming from his time as an assistant coach at Kentucky, Kenny Payne's reputation as an elite recruiter certainly precedes itself. When he was hired to be the next head coach at Louisville men's basketball, it imbued a charge of new life into the program.

While Payne has inserted himself into the mix for some of the top players in the Class of 2023, several recruiting battles in the current cycle have not gone Louisville's way. That trend reappeared on Thursday with another Cardinals target.

Malachi Smith, a former Chattanooga guard who was one of the top scorers in all of mid-major basketball, announced that he has committed to Gonzaga.

Smith entered the transfer portal in late April while also testing the NBA Draft waters, and Louisville did reach out, it appears that the Cardinals were never a serious option for Smith. When he decided that he would withdraw his name from the 2022 NBA Draft pool, Gonzaga and Texas Tech emerged as the frontrunners.

This yet another big loss for Louisville, especially considering that the amount of quality guards still available in the transfer portal is getting dangerously low. Payne has already lost out on recruitments for guards such as Skyy Clark, Sean McNeil and Tyrese Hunter, and now there is chatter that Emoni Bates could spurn Louisville for Michigan.

Guys like Mike James, Kamari Lands and Devin Ree can take reps at the two guard spot, but as of right now, El Ellis remains the only true scholarship guard on the roster. If the Cardinals want to be competitive in year one of the Payne Era, they absolutely need to land another solid backcourt piece to compliment Ellis.

Smith averaged 19.9 points per game, which led the SoCon and ranked 22nd in Division I, while also shooting 49.3 percent from the field and 40.7 percent on three-point attempts. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound shooting guard also chipped in 6.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game, and was named the 2022 SoCon Player of the Year.

(Photo of Malachi Smith: Geoff Burke - USA TODAY Sports)

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