Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari will see a familiar face across from him when his team next faces the rival Louisville Cardinals. Louisville hired Kenny Payne away from the New York Knicks to be the new Cardinals head coach, but Payne also coached under Calipari at Kentucky for nearly a decade.
Calipari has a great relationship with Payne, but that Kentucky-Louisville rivalry is truly fierce. The Wildcats head coach admitted he wants to destroy Payne when they go up against each other, via Will Backus at 247Sports' CardinalAuthority:
“Kenny’s my brother,” Calipari said at a service event in Oldham County, Kentucky. “He’s family. I wish him well except for when we play him. I hope he gets his head bashed in when we play him. Other than that, I hope they win every game. Will we recruit against him? Some. But that never has been an issue with Kentucky and Louisville and recruiting. Some, but it’s not like every kid we’re recruiting, they’re recruiting. I want him to go out and do well. I want him to — this is his chance. This is his opportunity to prove himself. And I think you’re going to see — I’ve said it all along, he should’ve been hired five years ago at Louisville. But they got him now. He’s surrounding himself with good people. He is a good person and so I think it’s gonna go fine.”
Calipari and Payne are already locked in a big recruiting battle for DJ Wagner, who's viewed by many as the top player in the 2023 class.
On the court, Kentucky is trying to bounce back from a stunning first-round upset loss in the 2022 NCAA Tournament to Saint Peter's, one of the greatest Cinderella stories ever. Louisville was awful last season, resulting in the departure of Chris Mack and the hiring of Payne. Kentucky and Louisville didn't play in 2021, so it will be great to get this rivalry back on track.
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