SAD NEWS: Louisville announced that Danilo Jovanovich is Leaving immediately today after Facing…..
Louisville officials expect to inform Kenny Payne within the next 24 hours that he will not return as men’s basketball coach, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.
Payne had yet to speak with athletic director Josh Heird by Tuesday night since losing in the ACC tournament earlier in the day.
Louisville’s season ended with a 94-85 loss to NC State, as the Cardinals finished 8-24 overall and 3-17 in ACC play.
Louisville is expected to owe Payne around $8 million, the buyout of what’s remaining on the six-year contract he signed when he was hired, sources told ESPN.
He finishes his Louisville career with an overall record of 12-52, with just one win away from home.
Following Tuesday’s loss, Payne was asked about his performance as Louisville coach and whether he deserved a third year.
The Cardinals went 5-35 in ACC play over the past two years, posting last-place league finishes each time.
Payne joined Louisville with an exceptional resume in hand.
He starred with the Cardinals in the 1980s and even helped the team win the 1985-86 national championship.
The small forward then went No. 19 overall to the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1989 NBA draft and played four seasons with the team.
Payne has coached since 2004, starting at Oregon before leaving for Kentucky to work on John Calipari’s staff in 2010.
He was promoted to associate head coach in 2014 before heading to the New York Knicks in 2020 to be an assistant on Tom Thibodeau’s staff.
Two years later, Payne replaced Chris Mack, who mutually agreed to part ways with the school in January 2022.
On paper, it looked like Payne could thrive in Louisville. Unfortunately, the team has bottomed out.
This two-year stretch is the worst in school history since 1939-1941, when the team went 3-32.
And so the coaching carousel continues in Louisville, which has seen much turmoil since the controversial, scandalous and unceremonious end of the Rick Pitino era.
