LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The University of Louisville men’s basketball team needs a complete makeover: backcourt, front court, mid court, court side, courtyard.
The thousands of fans who lost interest need to show they’re ready to lose their minds over Cardinal basketball again. I expect they will. A solid turnout for the home finale with Virginia on Saturday will be their next opportunity to send a rousing signal of the program’s heartbeat.
Here is another item for the program to address as administrators finish recruiting the school’s next basketball coach, especially if the new guy is former Cardinal Kenny Payne:
Former players need to show they’re eager to back the next coach. Encouraging words from guys of substance like Junior Bridgeman, Wade Houston and Butch Beard would mean the world.
Remember: The next coach will likely take the job under the unusual conditions of working for an interim athletic director as well as an interim university president.
The next coach won’t know who his eventual bosses will be. People who can provide legitimate support would help the new guy get started and then settled with encouraging words.
Players from every era — Hickman, Dromo, Crum, Pitino, Mack — can help. Players who scored thousands of points or only a few. Players from every background.
It’s their program. They helped make it one of the 10 best jobs in the country and they can help return Louisville basketball to that lofty status. This isn’t going to a quick and easy fix.
There’s been too much discord circling the program since multiple NCAA scandals started seven years ago. In addition to committing to an interim AD and president, the next coach will also confront the uncertainty of how the NCAA will rule on U of L’s latest infractions case.
That’s a large pile of steaming uncertainty. Every sign of support will be meaningful.
Beard’s voice will matter because he has been directly critical of the lack of opportunities for Black candidates in coaching and athletic administrative roles at Louisville.
Beard backed Payne four years ago when most people quickly dismissed the idea of Payne leading the program. Beard knew Payne was ready then and I’m certain he believes Payne is more ready today. Payne has grown his credentials by working with Tom Thibodeau for two seasons for the New York Knicks in addition to the 10 years Payne was John Calipari’s top assistant at Kentucky.
Bridgeman and Houston served the university after their playing (Bridgeman) or playing and coaching (Houston) careers ended. They’ve earned respect in the community and the U of L fan base. By publicly getting on board with the next coach, they can ease the transition period.
Junior Bridgeman after a meeting between former Louisville basketball players and university administrators in 2021.
Houston told me last week that he believed Payne was the best candidate, the guy who checked the most boxes.
Bridgeman’s story should be shared with every player who joins the Louisville basketball program. He will always be Example A of a player who maximized every opportunity he encountered after his U of L career ended in 1975. In high school, Bridgeman was not considered the best college prospect on his team. That was Pete Trgovich. Together, with three other starters that signed with Division I schools, Trgovich and Bridgeman led East Chicago Washington to a 28-0 record and the 1971 Indiana High School championship.
Trgovich signed with UCLA, which had just won the fifth of seven straight national titles. Crum, an assistant at UCLA, recruited Trgovich to Westwood. He was the big, big, big catch. Then Crum left John Wooden for the Louisville job. That was a different world, long before players sat in front of cameras behind a table lined with baseball caps to make their college announcement.
Bridgeman quietly committed to Louisville after his senior season. He played one season on U of L’s last freshman team and then excelled for three seasons with the Cardinals. He excelled at everything. He played more than a decade in the NBA. He wasn’t there to simply dribble and shoot. He pursued knowledge of the business world everywhere he could find it. He learned about looking out for others while serving as the president of the NBA Players Association from 1985-88.
Bridgeman made himself a guy that Fortune magazine and Sports Illustrated profiled. He became one of the most successful franchise owners of first Wendy’s and then Chili’s in America. Speaking of Fortune, that magazine once wrote that Bridgeman was the fourth wealthiest former athlete in America.
At 68, Bridgeman directs multiple Coca Cola bottling operations as well as Ebony and Jet magazines. He’s an achiever, a leader and a generous contributor. He contributed years of serving his alma mater on various boards, including the board of trustees. When he served, publicity was never Bridgeman’s thing. He works quietly but effectively.
He has stayed in the background even more in recent years, as the program wobbled to its current sad state. When Bridgeman speaks, people listen. This would be a great time for him to show he’ll be there for the next coach. The same for Wade Houston and Butch Beard.
The next Louisville basketball coach would listen and appreciate any support that guys like Bridgeman, Houston and Beard could offer.
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