Louisville Men's Basketball Head Coach Hot Board 3.0

Here's an updated look at some of the more likely candidates to replace Kenny Payne as the head men's basketball coach of the Cardinals.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville's search for a new men's basketball head coach took an interesting turn on Saturday night.

Florida Atlantic head coach Dusty May, who over the last couple days had emerged as the odds-on favorite to take over the Cardinals, spurned UofL in favor of the vacant head coaching position at Michigan.

This development comes just a few days removed from Louisville's No. 1 target also saying no. This past Wednesday, Baylor head coach Scott Drew - after several days of behind-the-scenes negotiations for UofL - announced that he would be staying in Waco with the Bears.

Louisville is in the process of finding a coach to replace Kenny Payne, who was fired on Mar. 13. Payne's tenure at Louisville was nothing short of an abject disaster, going 12-52 record in his two years at his alma mater. This includes 5-35 in regular season ACC games, 1-28 in road/neutral site games and 0-19 in Quad 1 NET games. 

"Kenny has given a great deal to this university over a span of nearly 40 years, and he will always be a valued member of our Louisville family," athletic director Josh Heird said in a statement. "When we brought Kenny home in 2022, no one had a stronger belief than me in his potential success, but it's become clear that a change is needed to help this program achieve what is expected and attainable."

So who is still in the mix for the job? Below is an updated list of the individuals that are very likely candidates to be the next head coach of the Cardinals. Candidates in alphabetical order by last name:

Amir Abdur-Rahim

Record at South Florida: 25-7
Overall head coaching record: 70-81

Summary: When thinking of a coach who has made arguably the biggest rise in recent years amongst his peers, Abdur-Rahim is one of the first who comes to mind. After going just 19-65 in his first three years at Kennessaw State - including a 1-28 mark in year one - Abdur-Rahim guided the Owls to a 26-9 record and their first ever D1 NCAA Tournament berth in 2023. Following his four-year run at Kennesaw State, he took the job at South Florida and had immediate success. The Bulls are currently 25-7, and captured the American Athletic Conference regular season title over preseason favorite FAU.

While USF ultimately fell in the AAC Conference Tournament to miss out on this year's NCAA Tournament, the Bulls are currently in the midst of an NIT run. Of course, the two main knocks against Abdur-Rahim are: the lack of head coaching experience at the power conference level (although his has been an assistant at Georgia and Texas A&M) and no proven high school recruiting track record. Although he has shown a willingness to build through the portal over the last couple seasons.

Mick Cronin

Record at UCLA: 114-52
Overall head coaching record: 478-223

Summary: Whether it was Murray State, Cincinnati or UCLA, Cronin has had success everywhere he has gone. Not only has he made multiple NCAA Tournament appearances at each stop, but has been named conference Coach of the Year at least once with each program. Not to mention that he has Louisville ties, serving as an assistant under Rick Pitino for two seasons.

One caveat is that, while Cronin gets to the NCAA Tournament, he hasn't taken his team far. Out of his 14 trips to the Big Dance, he made it past the first weekend just four times. While he has done so in every one of his non-COVID seasons with the Bruins, including a Final Four in 2021, UCLA is primed to miss out on the NCAA Tournament entirely this season.

Jamie Dixon

Record at TCU: 160-109
Overall head coaching record: 488-232

Summary: Ever since becoming a head coach, Dixon has been incredibly successful. During his 13-year run as the head coach at Pitt, he guided the Panthers to 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, and three trips to the second weekend. Pitt was also briefly ranked as the No. 1 team in the country during the 2008-09 season when he was named the Naismith Coach of the Year.

He eventually left the ACC to coach TCU, his alma mater. While his first five years at the helm were a mixed bag, Dixon has led the Horned Frogs to three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances, and they are a trendy pick to upset No. 1 Purdue in a potential second round matchup. The big question with Dixon is: would he leave Fort Worth, and how serious of a candidate is he?

Shaheen Holloway

Record at Seton Hall: 37-28
Overall head coaching record: 101-85

Summary: Holloway is quickly ascending up the coaching ladder, and is regarded as one of the top young coaches in the country. Taking over a Saint Peters program that had one winning season in a seven-year span, he was able to guide them on a miracle Cinderella run to the Elite Eight during his fourth year with the Peacocks in 2022, which included a stunning first round upset over Kentucky.

After that, he left for his alma mater at Seton Hall. While Holloway has yet to guide the Pirates to the NCAA Tournament in his two seasons there, they very nearly made it this season, and he has had some impressive wins so far - including two against UConn. But, like with Dixon, would Holloway be one to leave his alma mater that he is extremely loyal to?

Pat Kelsey

Record at Charleston: 75-26
Overall head coaching record: 261-121

Summary: Kelsey has been one of the top mid-major coaches in college basketball for quite some time now, and his last two seasons at Charleston have been some of his best coaching work. The Cougars are 58-11 during this span, are back-to-back Coastal Athletic Association champions, and have been a popular pick to upset Alabama in the first round of this year's tournament.

That being said, in his three NCAA Tournament appearances between Charleston and Winthrop, Kelsey has not advanced past the first round once. His name has also come up for a smattering of other jobs, but has yet to take that next step. He's also not a proven recruiter at all, as he's only ever landed two recruits with a247Sports profile during his time as a head coach. Though NIL could help with that last part.

Eric Musselman

Record at Arkansas: 110-58
Overall college head coaching record: 220-92

Ranging from the college ranks to the NBA, Musselman has an extensive background in coaching the game of basketball. Prior to Arkansas, he was the head coach at Nevada, has been an assistant at LSU and Arizona State, as well as the head man at the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.

While his fifth year with the Razorbacks has been a big disappointment at 15-16, he has already long shown he is an elite college coach. He has led Arkansas to a pair of Elite Eights and a Sweet 16, and has signed three top-15 recruiting classes - including the No. 2 class in 2022. Though he does have a bit of a reputation with assistants as being hard to work with, and there is the worry that me might not be in it for the long haul considering he has not stayed at one place for more than a few seasons.

Shaka Smart

Record at Marquette: 74-29
Overall head coaching record: 346-171

Summary: Smart has long established himself as one of the best coaches in college basketball. He burst onto the scene back in 2011 after taking VCU from the First Four to the Final Four, then after an up-and-down tenure at Texas, has guided Marquette back to national prominence in his third season with the Golden Eagles.

But ever since his Final Four run with the Rams, he has yet to crack the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, even with six teams that finished in KenPom's top 30. Plus, it might be difficult to pluck him from Marquette since he is a Wisconsin native, and has already made the jump to a Power Five school once before.

(Photo of Shaheen Holloway: Vincent Carchietta - USA TODAY Sports)

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