Kenny Payne is expected to take one of Coach K’s young prodigies from Duke’s coaching staff as Payne’s first piece on his Louisville staff. Nolan Smith, a former Duke guard and assistant coach, reportedly told the Blue Devils he will not return to the team next season to begin the next era of the Brotherhood.
Multiple reports say Smith will instead join Kenny Payne at Louisville as Payne’s associate head coach. The connection is strong there because Payne was very close to Smith’s father, the late Derek Smith who was a Louisville Cardinal a few years before Payne arrived on Louisville’s campus.