Kenny Payne and Other NCAA Basketball Coaches in Trouble This 2023–24 Season

Published 12/24/2023, 12:31 AM EST

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USA Today via Reuters

The current season seems to be ending soon for some NCAA coaches as they continue to underperform. Leading this list is Kenny Payne, the Louisville Cardinals head coach. His team’s recent and recurrent defeats are weighing the situation down southwards.

The 2023-24 NCAA season is almost halfway through and many teams are facing their respective ups and downs. Although, it’s a team sport and the players’ performance plays a key role, however, it’s the coaches’ directions, ideas, and strategies that make the whole gameplay work when the team is out there on the court. More importantly, a coach is the prime spectator of the moves made by the opponent team while they guide the players accordingly.

Kenny Payne sitting in this season’s hot seat

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Kenny Payne’s path as a head coach has been going through some discrepancies, as he has been facing a challenging time. A series of poor performances has led to the Cardinals’ future in uncertainty under his leadership. Currently, the team holds a 4-6 record, while they finished with a 4-28 record last season, eventually leading to speculation and scrutiny about Payne’s future with the program.

USA Today via Reuters

Moreover, there has been inconsistency in the team’s performance. For instance, they played Texas down till the final buzzer, then got a close grab with Indiana, followed by a home loss to Chattanooga by 10, and having back-to-back wins over New Mexico State and Bellarmine.

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Also, the team had some turnover trouble in their exhibition opener against Simmons College. They ended up committing 22 turnovers as the game concluded. Another factor impacting the situation is the team’s last season’s sub-par record of 4-28, which led them to the last rank in the ACC.

But Kenny Payne is not the only one whose performance is hitting a rocky road!

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Other coaches who may not be there in the final four dance

Following the queue is UCLA Bruins’ head coach Mick Cronin, who is facing some pretty intense struggles this season. However, he holds a record of 104-42 (.712) with UCLA. Moreover, he was named a Pac-12 Coach of the Year in 2019-20, which was his first season with the Bruins. Despite the victories, Cronin is often expressing his disappointment with his team’s performance in defense.

Next on the list is Michigan Wolverines men’s basketball head coach Juwan Howard. his performance has been affected by several reasons. One of them is his recent heart surgery in September, as his recovery impacted the team’s preparation and performance initially in the season. Moreover, given Howard’s stellar track record, the Wolverines are expected to perform better, which, however, is perceived as underperforming.

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Despite these observations, the season might see some hopeful improvements as it all depended on a bunch of minute factors. Till then, let’s see who gets to make it through the entire season.

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Written by:

Dimple Gupta

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Edited by:

Bilal Handoo