London Johnson won't play for Louisville basketball in 2025-26 season

London Johnson won't play for Louisville basketball in 2025-26 season

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Story byThe Courier JournalBrooks Holton, Louisville Courier JournalWed, January 14, 2026 at 3:04 AM UTC·3 min read

In a change of plans, former NBA G League guard London Johnson won't see the court for Louisville basketball this season.

Coach Pat Kelsey said Johnson will redshirt the 2025-26 campaign, as originally planned, during his opening statement after the No. 19 Cardinals lost 79-70 to No. 16 Virginia on Tuesday night at the KFC Yum! Center.

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In a statement before last weekend's comeback victory over Boston College, UofL said Johnson, 21, would be "dressed and available" for the first time since arriving on campus Dec. 12. The 6-foot-3 Georgia native did not check in, but coach Pat Kelsey said afterward the plan for him was to forgo a redshirt in 2025-26, using one of his two years of eligibility, and add depth to the team's backcourt; which was without star freshman Mikel Brown Jr. and top scorer Ryan Conwell against the Eagles due to injuries.

"I give the kid a lot of credit for his willingness to do it," Kelsey said. "It's going to be really good to have that depth."

As for why Johnson didn't play against Boston College, Kelsey said it was simply "too soon." Having spent less than a month at Louisville, he needs to get up to speed on the Cards' terminology and scheme — as made evident when, after a film session last Saturday morning, the guard approached him and said, "My head's spinning a little bit now."

"We tried to go warp speed to get the kid ready," Kelsey said, "but this is college stinking basketball at the Power (Four) level. "His mentality for the last month was, 'I'm redshirting; I'm lifting; I'm getting my body right; scout team; running the other team's stuff.' ... It just kind of went to, 'Deep breath — slow down. Let's build this thing a little bit. Let's get to practice; let's ramp you up — don't just throw (you) out to the wolves."

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Now, Johnson has the remainder of the season to further acclimate before making his collegiate debut in 2026-27.

"It's important to understand: The kid (hasn't) played in a real game since, like, May," Kelsey said last Saturday. "He's not in game shape."

UofL first offered Johnson in 2021, entering its fourth and final season under former coach Chris Mack. At the time, the guard out of Norcross High School ranked 46th overall and eighth at his position in the Class of 2022 on the 247Sports Composite.

Johnson opted to bypass college and suit up for the now-defunct G League Ignite. In 55 games with the team, he averaged 10.5 points on 43.2% shooting (32.4% from 3-point range), 4.1 assists and two rebounds per appearance. Across 21 games in the G League between stints with the Main Celtics and the Cleveland Charge during the 2024-25 season, he posted 3.1 points per on 40% shooting (34.4% from 3) with 1.7 assists and 1.3 rebounds.

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Johnson committed to Louisville on Oct. 20 — less than a month after Santa Clara's Thierry Darlan became the first player to obtain NCAA eligibility after playing in the G League — and signed Nov. 18.

This story will be updated.

Reach Louisville men's basketball reporter Brooks Holton at [email protected] and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: London Johnson, Louisville basketball G from NBA G League, redshirting

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