Watch: Louisville HC's postgame presser encapsulates disastrous tenure

"When I walked into the program as the new head coach, I talked about needing everyone on the same page. We sort of forgot that," Payne said when asked about his future.

"I talked about how I won't let you blame me, I'm not standing up here by myself. I need all of Louisville with me. We sort of forgot that. I talked about it taking time, and watching who jumped on and off the Titanic. We sort of forgot that. Whether I'm the coach or not, I can look in the mirror and say I gave it everything I had to fix this program," Payne said.

While it is true Payne walked into a horrific situation at Louisville (8-24), which endured multiple scandals during previous administrations, he repeatedly has shown he is unsuited for the job. 

In his two-year tenure, Payne's Cardinals are 12-52, with just one win away from the KFC Yum! Center. In 2022-23, they went 4-28, and while that number doubled in 2023-24, there were too many coaching gaffes for Louisville officials to ignore. 

Following a November loss to Indiana, Payne admitted that Indiana head coach Mike Woodson "tricked" him by playing zone defense — something he didn't have his guys prepared for. 

Just over a week later (after a rare win), Payne talked to reporters about guard Ty-Laur Johnson not playing in the first half. 

Rather than simply saying it was a team matter and keeping the issue internal, he threw Johnson under the bus by explaining the reason he didn't play in the first half. 

"I probably shouldn't tell you this, but we didn't have the tights he wanted. So he wasn't sure he wanted to play."

Some will rightly argue that Johnson was being immature, but recruits watching a head coach publicly make those kinds of comments will take note. 

Louisville basketball has a proud history of competing for conference and national championships. To regain relevance in the ACC and on the national stage, it needs an experienced program leader. 

Payne is not that leader.