Brown: It's time for Josh Heird to address fate of Louisville basketball coach Kenny Payne
Louisville athletics director Josh Heird needs to publicly address the fate of men’s basketball coach Kenny Payne one way or another because this is no way for a program to live.
If there’s no decision to be made until the end of the season.
Say it.
If Payne will be replaced immediately and an interim coach is going to guide the Cardinals the rest of the way.
Do it.
If there is a target dollar amount that explains why he should stay or go.
Show it.
If there is a compelling argument as to why U of L needs to keep Payne at the helm.
Prove it.
What can’t continue is keeping everyone in limbo on what will happen next. Rumors and speculation surrounding the program continue to swirl after every misstep and loss.
It’s not fair to the fanbase.
It’s not fair to the players.
It’s not fair to Kenny Payne.
Payne scored what would normally be a tremendous boost to the program when five-star recruit Karter Knox came for a visit on Saturday. Knox is the brother of Kevin Knox, whom Payne helped recruit to Kentucky, and is ranked 14th in the Class of 2024.
But even Knox’s visit rings hollow in the midst of the turmoil that surrounds Payne’s tenure.
How can Knox commit to a coach who he can’t say with certainty will be around next season? How can any recruit do so?
The current players performed with a sense of urgency they’ve rarely showed this season on Sunday during their 85-63 win over Pepperdine at the KFC Yum! Center.
They held their largest lead of the season at 30 points and it was their largest margin of victory in Payne's two seasons at the helm. For one afternoon, they had the look of what Louisville basketball is supposed to be.
The irony: if the Cards played like that every game this season, even in losses, Payne probably would not be in the position of having his job questioned.
Yes, the blame falls on Payne and his coaching staff to get the players to that point. But don’t think for one second that Payne waved some magic wand after Wednesday’s 12-point home loss to Arkansas State.
What he’s been teaching and the way he’s been coaching didn’t change in a game. The players finally received his message and understood the stakes involved.
They are not immune from what is going on around them. They see the comments on social media. They get bombarded with questions from fans, their peers in school and family members about if Payne is going or staying.
That is a question only Heird can answer though.
Payne said during his postgame news conference on Sunday that he has talked with Heird since the Arkansas State loss about how to build momentum in the program and community. But Payne said they have not discussed his job status.
"I believe Josh wants us to be good," Payne said. "He wants us to make this fan base proud; and I know he wants for the guys to enjoy being here. I have the same goals."
It’s an unnecessary burden to put on the players to feel like they’re responsible for saving or losing Payne’s job.
But that pressure will exist with every game, every shot, every turnover, every missed defensive assignment, where they don’t have a clear sense of where the program is headed.
Heird has clearly made tough decisions before.
When he was still just the interim athletics director in January of 2022, he initiated the settlement agreement to end former coach Chris Mack’s tenure before the season was done.
If that’s what he needs to do now with Payne, he needs to do it. Now.
If that’s not what he believes the situation calls for, then he needs to let it be known. Either way, Louisville basketball needs a definitive answer in order to move forward this season.
Reach sports columnist C.L. Brown at clbrown1@gannett.com, 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: Kenny Payne: AD needs to address fate of Louisville basketball coach
