Pitino: Brian Bowen's commitment 'the luckiest I've been' in 40 years

Brian Bowen shocked almost everybody when he committed to Louisville last week, and even Rick Pitino was surprised with the Cardinals landing the five-star small forward.

Bowen didn't include Louisville on any of his five official visits, and practically every recruiting analyst didn't have the ACC program associated with the talented wing as his decision day loomed.

"We got lucky on this one," Pitino told Terry Meiners of News Radio 840. "I had an AAU director call me and ask me if I'd be interested in a player (Bowen). I saw him against another great player from Indiana. I said 'Yeah, I'd be really interested.' They had to come in unofficially, pay for their hotel, pay for their meals. We spent zero dollars recruiting a five-star athlete who I loved when I say him play. In my 40 years of coaching this is the luckiest I've been."

Landing any five-star player would be a huge recruiting win for any program, but Bowen's ability to shoot from beyond the arc will certainly help a Louisville team that lacked in that area last season.

Adding Bowen only beefed up an already impressive 2017 recruiting class for Pitino, as the 13th-ranked player in the country joins fellow five-star Malik Williams, and four-star commits Darius Perry, Jordan Nwora, and Lance Thomas.

The Cardinals also return standout players such as Quentin Snider, Deng Adel, and V.J. King, and should enter the season among the favorites to win the ACC.