The Floyd Street Tribune: A (part) answer to a question we've all been asking for years

Inside: Just how much has the NCAA cloud over Louisville basketball impacted the program the past five years? Kenny Payne provides a small glimpse.

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I remember the conversation with Chris Mack well, even if I can’t quite put my finger on when it actually happened and whether it was over text, phone or in person. Nevermind those details — they don’t matter for this larger point.

Even before frustrations began mounting for Mack during his tenure at Louisville, he bemoaned the untold, unquantifiable impact of the ongoing NCAA investigation on his staff’s recruiting efforts. It wasn’t delivered as an excuse or a complaint. It was entirely meant to be, well, pointing out a fact of life, a detail that he perceived to be a factor in Louisville’s recruiting, be it something parents of prospects brought up or opposing coaches mentioned in the heat of battle. But in mentioning all of that, he also acknowledged how difficult it was to truly know the real impact, and I don’t recall him publicly acknowledging that rival coaches (or rival apparel companies) used the NCAA stuff against Louisville on the trail.

That’s why Kenny Payne’s comments at a church prayer breakfast a few days ago were so interesting. If you haven’t seen or heard them, here’s a clip from WHAS-11:

Tyler Greever @Tyler_Greever

Payne is surprised by "hatred" coming from places due to people having interest in UofL. "I wasn't prepared for universities to say, 'Louisville is going on probation, why would you ever go there?'" Some he's helped in the past have said such things, changing their relationship.

“I wasn’t prepared for universities to say, 'Louisville’s going on probation — why would you ever go there?’ to deter these kids from listening,” Payne said. “And especially from people I’ve helped in the past. It’s a lesson for me. As I’ve taken this job, and I hate to say this, my relationships with certain people who have been in my life for 30, 40 years have changed. And that hurts me.”

So, you can read into “people I’ve helped in the past” or “certain people who have been in my life for 30, 40 years.” And you might also wonder how Payne could possibly be unprepared for other schools to negative recruit against his new program when everyone just assumes that happens. But really, to me, the biggest point in all of this is: Here is a head coach of a program flat-out saying other schools use the NCAA investigation against them. That is noteworthy, even if it seems rather obvious.