Louisville basketball: Star guard Terrence Edwards commits to Cards

Louisville basketball received a massive commitment from star James Madison guard Terrence Edwards.

Louisville basketball has secured a commitment from one of the top 10 transfer portal players in the 2024 class.

Terrence Edwards Jr., a rising redshirt senior from James Madison, appeared in 36 games this season for the 32-4 Dukes. He averaged 17.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game while knocking down 34.3% shooting from deep.

With the addition of Edwards and Charleston transfer Reyne Smith, Louisville basketball has now secured two veteran ball-handling guards who shoot it well.

Edwards comes with a host of accolades. He won Sun Belt Sixth Man of the Year in 2023, and then the Sun Belt Player of the Year this season.

the 6-foot-6, 190-pound wing from Atlanta, Georgia led the Dukes to just their 6th-ever NCAA tournament and secured their first NCAA Tournament win in 41 years when they took down Wisconsin last week.

Against Wisconsin, Edwards notched 14 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a block. He then went for 13, 3 boards, 2 assists, and a block against Duke.

Edwards is proven against the nation’s top competition. He scored 24 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and dished out 3 assists at Michigan State in JMU’s season opener.

What scouts are saying

CBS Sports

“Edwards was the leading scorer at 17.2 points per game for a James Madison team that finished 32-4 with a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The 6-foot-6 guard also dished out 3.4 assists for the Dukes after making significant productivity strides in all four years he was at JMU.”

No Ceilings (NBA)

“When Terrence Edwards gets going, he’s one of the most exciting players in college hoops. Edwards has the speed, slither, and creativity to get deep into the paint on a consistent basis.

His ball handling stands out, as he’s comfortable putting it on the deck with either hand. He has a plethora of different dribble moves to get his defender off balance and has real shake with the ball. The way he oscillates speeds makes him tough to telegraph and forces miscommunication in ball screen settings. His sudden directional changes and ability to get skinny in traffic make him hard to contain. The obvious response would be to get physical with him, but he’s so shifty that it’s tough to even do that. Oftentimes, it just leads to teams fouling him, which is why he has a stellar .440 free throw rate. Sending him to the stripe is perilous, too, because he makes 79.3% of his free throws.

… During Edwards’s sophomore campaign when he played 20.3 MPG, he posted a 2.8 STL% and 1.7 BLK%, both good numbers for a wing on the two/three side of the spectrum. This leads me to believe he can be capable at the next level.”

The Athletic

“Edwards exploded onto the national stage this season for one of the country’s best mid-major teams. He won the Sun Belt Player of the Year award after averaging 17.2 points while shooting 42.7 percent from the field, 34.3 percent from 3 and 81 percent from the line.

He was the primary creator for the 32-4 Dukes, playing largely as a big wing initiator next to shooters Noah Friedel and Xavier Brown in the backcourt. Typically, one of the guards brought the ball up the court before getting it to Edwards to begin their sets. Coach Mark Byington had Edwards play out of ball screens for the most part, and Edwards thrived in those settings as a sort of super-charged Swiss army knife who could see over his man and read the defense before making the right play. He throws terrific passes off a live dribble from multiple angles, averaging 3.4 assists per game, before fully taking over late in games. He can dynamically spin to either side and get to his shots, or he can drive all the way to the rim.

One thing worth tracking is that he wasn’t a particularly good finisher this year, making just 49 percent of his shots at the rim, per Synergy. But with TJ Bickerstaff and Jaylen Carey taking up space inside, Edwards did have to deal with at least one help man waiting to slide over at the rim.

Throw in Edwards’ solid (though not necessarily elite) defense, and he has all the makings of an top-quality high-major wing. With Byington leaving James Madison to go to Vanderbilt, one has to wonder if Edwards will follow to get a chance to run the show in the SEC for a season. If he doesn’t, he’ll be a highly sought after player among even the highest-end schools.”