Thursday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—The Louisville baseball team is off to Chapel Hill for its final road series of the season. Here’s a preview.

—Former U of L women’s soccer star Emina Ekic has been named a United Soccer Coaches Third Team All-American.

—Few things have ever been more up my alley than the Ken Burns documentary on Muhammad Ali that is coming this fall.

—The latest installment of Jeff Greer’s newsletter is out.

1. Louisville has good pieces in the backcourt, but as I’ve said, I still think the Cards could use a drink-stirring creator with some athleticism in the mix. I now believe they’ll pursue one if there’s a good fit out there in the transfer portal. (Check out Bart Torvik’s transfer rating function on his website.)

El Ellis is a combo guard who can make plays for others and provide multi-level scoring — and he is the best option to get outlet passes and go to help speed up Louisville’s tempo. Noah Locke is a true sharpshooter. Mike James is a physical, slashing type guard who, at 6-6, can be a versatile playmaker in a number of roles. Then Jarrod West can be the steady, veteran guard off the bench with decent quickness, quality shooting and gumption on defense who runs a good pick-and-roll.

But somewhere in there is a niche for a guard who can play on or off the ball and create. You can’t have too many players like that, especially in the ACC, and an addition like that would help lineup versatility even more.

—The new Pac-12 commissioner is someone nobody has ever heard of.

—The track and field Cards are ready for the ACC outdoor championships.

—Levi Usher seems to be getting back in the groove at the plate.

—Pretty cool move here.

—For those in the state who are fully vaccinated, Kentucky’s mask mandate is coming to an end.

—Louisville Report looks at three basketball recruits who are planning on taking visits to U of L.

—Keith Law’s latest MLB draft board for The Athletic has Louisville catcher Henry Davis as the No. 1 draft prospect in America.

1. Henry Davis, C, Louisville

Davis is now hitting .389/.511/.671 for the Cardinals, walking more than he’s struck out, with power, patience, bat control, and a plus arm. He also offers some certainty in a draft class with very little of it. For more on Davis, check out my in-person scouting report from April.

Alex Binelas is also on the list at No. 62.

—Speaking of Davis, he’s the focus of Cameron Teague Robinson’s latest profile piece for the CJ.

—Marques Maybin is the guest on the latest episode of Jeff Greer’s podcast.

—Only 44 people have reached the top of all of the world’s highest mountains. Or maybe no one has.

—Best run organization in America.

The course was in such terrible shape that the LSU men’s golf team practiced on it a couple hours after this announcement.

—From Twin Spires, five Preakness handicapping trends to consider before Saturday’s race.

—The Wienermobile will be in Louisville this week.

—The Athletic’s Brian Bennett has 12 thoughts on the 12 Louisville men’s basketball players currently on scholarship.

Jarrod West

2020-21: Senior (Marshall) — 12.5 ppg, 6.0 apg, 2.5 spg, 40.8 % 3-pt

Speaking of 40 percent 3-point shooters, that’s what West was this season at Marshall. And that’s not even his main calling card.

The 5-11 point guard ranked 11th nationally in steals and 12th in assists per game. He holds the Thundering Herd record for career steals and made the Conference USA all-defensive team this season. His 2.86 assist-to-turnover ratio also led the league.

West’s shooting percentages have fluctuated throughout his career, and the size in the ACC could give him trouble getting his shot off. But he’s a pest on defense and an ace distributor who will push Ellis for the starting job at the point. The staff also likes the idea of having both on the floor at the same time to feature multiple ball-handlers, as they did with Jones and Johnson in 2020-21. If West is getting overmatched physically, Ellis can provide more size. West might not be a big scorer for this team, but he probably won’t need to be.

—Scott Satterfield has extended an offer to Tulsa DB transfer Akayleb Evans.

—And finally, more prayers and general good vibes need to be sent in the direction of Bob Valvano, who we now know is fighting Stage 4 leukemia. Whole city is behind you, Bobby V.