What Chucky Hepburn Brings to Louisville

Here’s what the transfer from Wisconsin brings to the table for the Cardinals.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A few hours after landing Long Beach State transfer Aboubacar Traore on Thursday, head coach Pat Kelsey and the Louisville men’s basketball program dipped right back into the portal.

Chucky Hepburn, a three-year starter at Wisconsin, is heading to the Derby City to conclude his collegiate career with the Cardinals.

Starting in 35 games for the Badgers this past season, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound point guard averaged 9.2 points, 3.9 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game, while shooting 42.9/32.2/73.7 for the season.

The Omaha, Neb. native has been a mainstay of the Badgers’ starting lineup for the last three season, starting in every single one of his 103 appearances. During Hepburn’s time in Madison, he totaled 1,013 points, 313 assists, 286 rebounds and 162 steals.

But beyond his stat lines, what else does Hepburn bring to the table for the Cardinals?

While most of Louisville’s transfer commits up to this point have some experience with facilitating the offense, Hepburn is without question a point guard through-and-through. He is a playmaker on both ends of the court, with his primary focus being a table setter on offense and a disruptive pest on defense.

Offensively, Hepburn is the epitome of a floor general, as he possesses incredible court vision. He can see cutters from clear across the court, is good at swing passes on the drive with defenses collapsing on him, and even his pump fakes can open up passing lanes.

On top of his pure instincts when it comes to running the offense, very rarely does he make the wrong decision or an incredibly risky one. His 3.19 assist-to-turnover ratio not only ranked second in the Big Ten, but it was good for 14th nationally.

What about his own scoring ability? Well, with great handles and a good first step, he is very explosive and can wiggle his way through defenders on his way to the basket. That first step also bodes well when it comes to getting around a screen, and he is an incredibly crafty finisher when the defense starts to collapse on him. He made 62.7 percent of his dunks and close twos, per Bart Torvik

Hepburn might not be an elite three-point shooter, but he is a threat to score from long range. The aforementioned speedy first step around a screen helps him get a quick open shot, and he can create his own with a decent step back move.

A underrated aspect of Hepburn’s scoring ability is his midrange game. Whether it’s a step back off the drive or a fadeaway, he’s got a good midrange jumper that gives him a lot of space to get the shot off.

One very clear weakness with Hepburn as a scorer is that he is not nearly as good of a shooter on the left side of the court. He shot 38 percent on right above the break threes, but just 27 percent on the left side. He was an impressive 48 percent from the right elbow, but a measly 26 percent from the left.

Something else to be a little wary about is that he struggled some last season when it came to shooting off the dribble. In fact, he had only a 37 percent effective field goal percentage, which ranks just in the 19th percentile nationally.

Over on defense, Hepburn is an absolute hound. His defensive style is that of the “40 Minutes of Hell” Arkansas teams from the early 1990’s.

Whether it’s a pass from the baseline to get the possession started or a half court set, Hepburn will drape all over his man when they have the ball and press from way beyond the three-point line. That, plus is incredibly active hands, helped allow him to compiled the 18th-most steals in D1 last season (73).

Put together is all together, and Hepburn possesses a very unique set of elite skills. How unique? Only three high-major college basketball players had an offensive rating of 113.0 or more, an assist rate of 21.0 or more and a steal rate of 3.9 or more this past season: First-Team AP All-American and Houston guard Jamal Shead, NABC Freshman of the Year and Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard, and Hepburn.

Overall, this is a great pickup and a much needed one for Louisville. The Cardinals were in need of a true point guard to help run the offense (and defense) that Pat Kelsey wants to run, and Hepburn can do exactly that.

(Photo of Chucky Hepburn via University of Louisville Athletics)