Kenny Payne Seeing Offseason Growth in Louisville
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Ever since March when Kenny Payne first took over as Louisville men's basketball head coach, his program has been shrouded in relative mystery. Leaks about staff hires and recruiting tendencies have been at a minimum, and Payne himself has not engaged in very many interview opportunities throughout the summer.
This past weekend when the former New York Knicks and Kentucky assistant spoke at the St. Stephen Baptist Men's Ministry Prayer Breakfast, we got to know a little bit more about the last few months have gone since players returned to campus and the roster has been finalized. One of his talking points was about the growth he has seen in his players, both from systematic standpoint and a physical one.
Payne has discussed very little when it comes to what style of play Louisville fans should expect heading into his first season as a head coach. He says he wants to be defensive-minded and play "free flowing, unpredictable basketball" on offense, but other than that, not much else is known about his system.
At the prayer breakfast, Payne went a little more in depth. He discussed a 4-on-0 set he would run when offseason workouts first started, where two players were in the corners and two others would cover high spaces. During the set, he wanted eight passes and two lane touches before anyone attempted a shot. It took his players some time to get it down, but as the summer has progressed, it has become second nature.
"It can't be a simultaneous lane touch, meaning you drive, you kick, he can't drive it to the person that caught it off the drive," he said, via WHAS11. He has to pass it again, he drives. Eight passes, two lane touches, then I don't care what you do after that.
"The first day, 45 minutes before we did it right once. Take it to three weeks ago, every other play was done correctly. We saw growth."
Not only are players starting get a firmer grasp on what he wants to run, they're starting to round into physical shape as well.
Because Payne wants his teams to operate with motor, and "to be energetic, to be active, and to be disruptive," his players have been running a conditioning drill that he ran while at Kentucky. It involves running baseline-to-baseline 15 times, but it has to be done in a minute and 30 seconds.
Seems tough, right? Well it is, even to the point where many players dubbed it "impossible" when Payne first told them about it. As you can imagine, impossible is nothing for Payne.
"I lose my mind when they use that word impossible," he said. "Just to give an example: from the time I've been here working with the guys, the last two days, Sydney Curry did it two days in a row. We've been here three, four months, and he's just now getting it."
There's still plenty of work to be done in between now and when the season starts in early November, but Payne believes his guys are physically on schedule.
"In order to do what you're really saying, I have to make sure that they're in shape, and that they can handle it," he said. "They are headed in the right direction."
(Photo of Kenny Payne: Jeff Faughender - Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
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