Former Louisville coach Kenny Payne, who served on John Calipari's staff at Kentucky from 2010 to 2020, will serve as Calipari's associate head coach at Arkansas.
John Calipari speaks to the Razorback faithful after being introduced as the new head coach of the Arkansas men's basketball team. From 2010 to 2020, Payne was an assistant and associate head coach during Calipari's most successful years at Kentucky. Payne was noted for his work with some of the notable big men who anchored the program, including NBA All-Stars
With Payne on staff, Calipari won his lone national championship in 2012 and participated in a streak of four Final Four appearances in five seasons. Former players would sometimes return to Lexington during the NBA offseason to work with Payne, who left Kentucky in 2020 for a role as an assistant with theCalipari had his worst years after Payne left the program, including a 9-16 season in 2020-21. The Wildcats also had two first-round losses in the NCAA tournament over three seasons.
In 2022, Payne left the Knicks for Louisville, where he finished 12-52 and struggled to find momentum over two seasons. While the detractors grew louder in Payne's second season -- he won a national title with the Cardinals as a player in 1986 -- Calipari remained supportive. "He's got a really young team," Calipari said about Payne at the Champions Classic in November."And you've got to let him go and do what he does. The players love him because they play for him. They never let go of the rope. And I'm watching and I feel for him. Shoot, we went through it a couple of years ago. The people get mean and nasty. They do. And that's what you have to deal with in this profession. ...
, the 7-footer who played for him at Kentucky. And every key member of his nationally ranked recruiting class at Kentucky has decommitted since his departure, opening the door to more top talent possibly following him to Fayetteville.
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