C.L. Brown, Louisville Courier JournalWed, January 14, 2026 at 2:27 AM UTC·2 min readLondon Johnson isn’t coming to rescue Louisville basketball this season, no matter how long Mikel Brown Jr.’s back injury keeps him out of the lineup.
Maybe Johnson would have made a difference in the Cardinals' 79-70 loss to Virginia on Tuesday at the KFC Yum! Center.
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UofL coach Pat Kelsey said after Saturday’s win over Boston College that he hesitated throwing Johnson into the game because he wasn’t familiar with their terminology nor their schemes.
UofL reverted to the original plan for Johnson, whose semi-controversial commitment in the fall riled up some coaches like Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, to sit him this semester and allow him to play the 2026-27 season.
Truth is, there shouldn’t be much hand-wringing at all over players like Johnson, who played in the NBA’s G League before signing with the Cards. The consternation over allowing “professionals” to play college basketball is way overblown.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThey’ve virtually always been in the game.
Professional international players who come here tend to be glossed over quickly because the average American, even many die-hard basketball fans, don’t know anything about professional leagues overseas.
Baylor’s James Nnaji was taken by the Detroit Pistons in the 2023 NBA Draft but never signed with the Pistons nor the New York Knicks after they obtained his rights. That makes him sound better than he really is.
Nnaji spent some time playing in Spain’s top professional league, Liga ACB.
Guess who else played in that same league?
Virginia’s 6-foot-9 Belgian forward Thijs De Ridder, who will be a 23-year-old freshman at the end of the month. It’s his first season with the Wahoos because he spent the past few years playing in Spain’s top professional league.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDe Ridder started for the Cavaliers and had nine points and eight rebounds. Solid, but hardly the transformative play that would be expected from a pro.
He’s not much different than Louisville center Sananda Fru, a 22-year-old freshman from Germany. Fru played in the top professional league in Germany before deciding to give college hoops a try.
He’s made steady progress this season but plays like a newcomer does — not as someone with a professional background.
Fru fouled out after having six points and five rebounds against UVA.
There wasn't any protest when De Ridder or Fru signed to play in college.
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Reach sports columnist C.L. Brown at [email protected], follow him on X at @CLBrownHoops and subscribe to his newsletter at profile.courier-journal.com/newsletters/cl-browns-latest to make sure you never miss one of his columns.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: London Johnson won't fill Mikel Brown Jr.'s shoes. Who will for UofL?
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