Louisville Officially Announces Addition of Guard Reyne Smith

The guard was the very first commitment for the Cardinals following the hiring of Pat Kelsey as head coach.

Mar 16, 2023; Orlando, FL, USA; College of Charleston Cougars guard Reyne Smith (2) / Russell Lansford-USA TODAY Sports

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville men's basketball program has officially signed former College of Charleston guard Reyne Smith, the program announced Tuesday.

Smith is the first of 13 newcomers for the 2024-25 season to be officially announced by the Cardinals. He was the very first commitment following the hiring of Pat Kelsey as head coach on Mar. 28.

"One of the best shooters in the world at his age, Reyne is battle tested and brings an invaluable level of stability to the program," Kelsey said in a statement. "He's an established producer over 102 games at the Division I level and represents his home country of Australia at the highest level of global competition. Reyne lives and breathes our culture. His toughness and consistency were cornerstones of what we built in Charleston. He'll embody what it means to be a Louisville basketball player."

The 6-foot-2, 190-pound shooting guard was one of the top players for the Cougars this past season. Playing in all 35 of Charleston's games while making 28 starts, he was their leading scorer at 12.8 points per games, while also averaging 2.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists. He was named All-CAA Second Team for his efforts.

Smith is a three-point specialist, connecting on 39.4 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc, and 41.0 percent of his field goals overall. 112 of his 133 made field goals and 284 of his 324 attempts last season were threes.

The native of Ulverstone, Australia has been a productive player in every one of his three seasons in college. In 102 career games and 89 starts with Charleston, Smith has totaled 1,212 points, 294 made threes, 192 rebounds, 149 assists and 68 steals.

Not long after the end of Louisville's disastrous 2023-24 campaign, one which resulted in the firing of second-year head coach Kenny Payne, the Cardinals' roster began to flip. All 12 of Louisville's scholarship players entered the portal, with only walk-on guard Aidan McCool in line to return.

Fortunately, Kelsey has done a fantastic job of roster construction since his hiring, bringing in 12 Division I transfers and one high school prospect. Their transfer portal class ranks No. 1 in the nation, according to On3.

(Photo of Reyne Smith: Russell Lansford - USA TODAY Sports)

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