Media Day: Padgett says Cards have length, athleticism

Louisville coach David Padgett says these Cardinals have athleticism and length at nearly every spot on the court.

The Cardinals figure to start 7-footer Anas Mahmoud in the post, 6-foot-11 Ray Spalding at the four, 6-6 VJ King and 6-7 Deng Adel on the wings and steady point guard Quentin Snider at point.

"I think you saw it the other night with Ray and Anas," Padgett said. "The Red Team couldn't score in the paint, and Anas finished with seven blocks. ... Deflections is obviously a huge stat for us, and if we can continue to get more than 35 of those per game we will be tough to beat.

"We have a lot of sze and now we just have to use it the right way."

Padgett said he likes what he has seen from the veterans in the starting lineup.

"Each guy brings his own different value," Padgett said. "The thing that makes me most excited is the way they move the ball on offense. That's what they understand as older players is that the more you pass the ball, the more you get easy shots."

Padgett said his concern now is to build depth behind the starters. Padgett said the last Red-White Scrimmage (a 32-point win for the starters over the newcomers) made the need for depth more evident.

"The good news for our freshmen is they get to play against those other guys in the starting lineup," Padgett said.

Freshman Malik Williams, a 6-foot-11 Top 30 recruit, showed tremendous potential in the last Red-White Scrimmage, hitting five three-pointers.

"He needs to know that he can't just float around the perimeter," Padgett said. "He needs to get in there and mix it up. ... The most impressive thing about him so far has been his rebounding ability though."