See Louisville women's basketball lineup after transfer portal moves - NBA

Jeff Walz has had another successful offseason in the transfer portal.

Heading into his 20th season as the Louisville women’s basketball coach, Walz added three key pieces from the portal and retained the core of the current team, which finished the season with a Sweet 16 appearance and 29-8 record.

The Cardinals, who ranked 11th in the final USA TODAY Coaches Poll of the season, will use the next six months to prepare for a 2026-27 campaign that’s sure to arrive with high expectations. With seven upperclassmen who have all played significant minutes, this will be one of the Cardinals’ oldest and deepest teams in the last decade.

Here’s an updated look at Louisville’s 2026-27 women’s basketball team and projected starters:

Louisville women’s basketball incoming transfer portal players

Zam Jones, guard, N.C. State; Deniya Prawl, wing, Tennessee; Carys Baker, forward, Virginia Tech

Louisville replaced some height lost with the 6-foot-2 Laura Ziegler signing with the L.A. Sparks and 6-3 Anaya Hardy transferring to Notre Dame but added two 6-2 players in Baker and Prawl to help in the frontcourt. Prawl was a Louisville target coming out of high school, so the Cardinals staff is familiar with her game. She didn’t play much as a freshman for the Volunteers — who underwent a major roster overhaul this offseason — but has time to develop within Walz’s program. Baker and Jones, ESPN’s eighth-ranked transfer portal player, will be upperclassmen with one and two years, respectively, of eligibility remaining. Not only do they bring veteran leadership, but the two also have plenty of scoring ability. Jones took a leap in performance by averaging 14.9 points per game while shooting 36.6% from 3-point range in 2025-26. Baker shot 37.9% from long distance and 42.9% from the field, averaging 14.3 points per game.

Jan 4, 2026; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies forward Carys Baker (10) shoots against Louisville Cardinals forward Elif Istanbulluoglu (11) during the second half at KFC Yum! Center. Louisville defeated Virginia Tech 85-60. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Louisville women’s basketball outgoing transfer portal players

Anaya Hardy, forward (Notre Dame); Peyton Bradley, guard (UAB); Skylar Jones, wing (Baylor); Isla Juffermans, forward (College of Charleston)

Juffermans redshirted this season but will join former assistant coach Amanda Butler at the College of Charleston. Bradley only played in garbage time, while Jones, who had two 20-point games, saw her time on the court dwindle in the later stages of the regular season before Walz announced that she and the team parted ways prior to the NCAA Tournament. Hardy became a starter for the Cardinals one month into the regular season and was somewhat limited in her scoring ability. But she was accurate in the post, shooting a team-best 66.7% from the field while averaging 4.2 points in 11.4 minutes per game.

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