Louisville basketball’s Pat Kelsey has received a commitment from G League guard London Johnson for 2026.

Louisville Courier Journal

London Johnson, a guard who spent the previous three seasons in the NBA G League, has committed to Louisville basketball. This comes less than a month after the NCAA granted eligibility to a G League player.

Louisville basketball coach Pat Kelsey has signed London Johnson, a 6-foot-3 guard from the NBA G League, as their first Class of 2026 pledge.

Yes, you read it right. Johnson, 21, revealed his commitment to the Cardinals on Monday via X (previously Twitter). According to several reports, the Norcross, Georgia native will most likely have two years of eligibility beginning in 2026–27.

Jeff Goodman of The Field of 68 was the first to disclose Johnson’s pledge. In a post on X, Goodman stated that the guard is scheduled to arrive on campus midway through Kelsey’s second year “and will sit out for the rest of the season.”

Johnson’s pledge to U of L comes less than a month after Thierry Darlan became the first player to achieve NCAA eligibility after playing in the G League. Darlan signed with Santa Clara following two seasons in the professional levels.

Louisville offered Johnson in 2021, during their final season under previous coach Chris Mack. The guard was ranked 46th overall and ninth at his position in the Class of 2022 by 247Sports Composite. In addition to the Cards, he had offers from Alabama, Auburn, Cincinnati, Clemson, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, N.C. State, Ole Miss, Southern California, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Virginia.

Johnson, however, chose to join G League Ignite instead. He appeared in 55 games for the developmental team, averaging 10.5 points on 43.2% shooting (32.4% from three), 4.1 assists, and two rebounds per game, before the league shut it down in 2024, citing “the changing environment across youth and collegiate basketball” in terms of player compensation.

Johnson played 21 G League games between stints with the Main Celtics and the Cleveland Charge in 2024-25. In 14.4 minutes per appearance, he averaged 3.1 points on 40% shooting (34.4% from three), 1.7 assists, and 1.3 rebounds.

To this far in the 2026 recruiting cycle, Louisville has had limited success with some of its top high school prospects.

Newport native Taylen Kinney, the No. 2 point guard in the class, committed to Kansas in late September. Last week, four-star wing Colben Landrew chose UConn. The Cardinals are losing ground to Kentucky in the pursuit of Tyran Stokes, the country’s top player.

College basketball’s early signing period runs from November 12 to November 19.