Report: Louisville Guard El Ellis to Enter Transfer Portal

In a bit of a surprise turn of events, Louisville guard El Ellis plans to enter his name into the transfer portal after two years with the Cardinals, according to On3’s Joe Tipton.

The senior guard is currently going through the NBA Draft process after declaring late last month, but signed with an NCAA-certified agent to maintain his collegiate eligibility. He has one year of college ball remaining thanks to a COVID waiver year of eligibility that he can use at his disposal.

The decision to finish his career elsewhere is complete shift in Ellis' mindset from earlier this year. Ahead of Louisville's Senior Day, he admitted that his intent was to test the NBA waters, but that if he was to come back to college, it would be with the Cardinals.

"I just don't feel comfortable going to another school. I feel like Louisville is the place for me," he said back in March. "Even through everything that's been going on - the coaching change, the records, everything like that - I feel like if I'm going to come back and go to college again, I'm going to come back to Louisville because I didn't finish the way I wanted to. I want to leave as a winner, a that's something I didn't get to do. If college is going to be the next option for me, then I'm coming back to Louisville."

The 6-foot-3, 180-pound combo guard was a bright spot on an otherwise bleak season for Louisville. His 17.7 points per game finished third in the ACC behind Wake Forest's Tyree Applyby and NC State's Terquavion Smith, and his 4.4 assists per game came in at eighth in the league. He also shot 41.0 percent from the field, 31.9 percent on three-point attempts and 81.0 percent from the free throw line. He was named an All-ACC Honorable Mention as a result.

A former two-time JUCO All-American at Tallahassee Community College, Ellis joined Louisville for the 2021-22 season, and had an immediate impact. He averaged 8.7 points per game to finish as Louisville's third-leading scorer, averaged 1.6 assists per game, and was UofL's top three-point shooter by shooting percentage at 36.0 percent.

The Cardinals went just 4-28 under first year head coach Kenny Payne, and roster management has been in full swing since the end of their season. Louisville has now seen seven players enter the transfer portal on top of Ellis, with Kamari Lands, Devin Ree, Fabio Basili, Sydney Curry, Roosevelt Wheeler and Jae'Lyn Withers all departing.

Conversely, Payne and his staff have been hard at work behind the scenes attempting to bring in fresh talent for next season. Last month, the Cardinals landed former Illinois guard Skyy Clark, five-star 2023 center Dennis Evans and five-star 2023 reclass wing Trentyn Flowers. Louisville is also set to welcome top-70 wings Kaleb Glenn and Curtis Williams Jr., plus JUCO guard Koron Davis as part of their 2023 signing class.