Louisville basketball is 'the pinnacle.' Pat Kelsey's vision is to lead it there again

Pat Kelsey didn't get much sleep the night before he was introduced as Louisville men's basketball head coach.

When he did, he had a vision.

It's a recurring dream, the 48-year-old Cincinnati native said. It begins with St. Peter greeting him at heaven's gate.

He's given a tour of the neighborhood. The first house they come across is painted blue and red and has a Kansas Jayhawks logo on it. "That's where Bill Self lives," St. Peter says.

After passing the homes of Baylor's Scott Drew, Michigan's Dusty May and Kentucky's John Calipari, they reach their final stop.

"I'm talking (way) out in the distance; the moonlight's hitting it perfect," Kelsey said. "(It's) the biggest deal you've ever seen; and it is a, 'Stinkin' wow.' There's red all over that deal; and there's a big cardinal on it.

"I'm like, 'St. Peter, that's me?' He goes, 'No.'

"I go, 'Denny Crum?' (He says), 'No.' (I say), 'Rick Pitino?' He says, 'Son, that's where God lives.'"

Welcome to the Kelsey era. Thursday was for turning pages and selling hope.

After sinking to historic lows during Kenny Payne's disastrous two-year tenure and a topsy-turvy search for his successor, U of L finalized a five-year deal paying $2.3 million annually to a man with 12 years of head-coaching experience whose mentor, the late Skip Prosser, said makes "coffee nervous."

Kelsey exuded energy from the moment he stepped in front of the microphone at the Planet Fitness Kueber Center. He was resolute in his belief that a program Payne described numerous times as "broken" when he arrived was "ready" on Day 1 for a return to national prominence despite going 12-52 over the past two seasons.

He called it "the pinnacle" of his profession. Then, he outlined his vision for getting the Cards there again.

"If you don't plan on winning," he said, "don't put your shoes on."

Table the X's and O's for a minute. If Kelsey is going to build Louisville into the image of his regimes at Winthrop and, most recently, Charleston, it starts with culture.

"Culture," he said, "eats strategy for lunch."

That's one of the biggest reasons why athletics director Josh Heird offered him the job over a Zoom meeting Wednesday morning — and why he's confident more victories are on the horizon.

Sure, he was up until midnight Thursday chatting with Kelsey about roster construction and which big-time donors the coach should brush elbows with first; then woke up to a text message from the coach at 5:30 a.m. But his commitment to the grind wasn't the biggest draw.

"He understands that, while stacking wins is important, it's also important for the fans to feel connected to this program," Heird said. "I wanted someone who has the ability to navigate all of the responsibilities outside of coaching his team that this job demands.

"This job is big. This job is hard. It demands a lot. This job will impact your family. You have to know that, from the first day you take this job, there is never a day off. There is no, 'Yesterday didn't go well and no one noticed.' If you're willing to embrace that, and you're prepared to navigate that, this is one of the best jobs in the world."

Kelsey understood the assignment Thursday.

From poking fun at his status as the "third choice," behind Drew and May, to identifying Louisville as a Midwestern city with Southern sensibilities, he did his best to win over a fan base that grew fractured while debating Payne's fate, and who should be named his successor, as early as the doldrums of a 4-28 2022-23 season.

"Be who you is and not who you ain't," he said, quoting civil rights advocate Rev. France A. Davis. "Because if you ain't who you is, you is who you ain't."

Who he is — the son of a Marine turned Xavier basketball player turned coach turned car salesman, Mike Kelsey.

And one thing's for sure; "you haven't an intensity like (his)," his father said.

"I think it's Pat's destiny," he told a gaggle of reporters before the news conference. "He works really hard; he loves the game; he loves the kids he's coached over the years."

Speaking of players, Kelsey said he had the chance to speak for about 20 minutes Thursday with those from U of L's 2023-24 team who are still hanging around campus.

All but two on scholarship, freshman point guard Ty-Laur Johnson and sophomore forward Emmanuel Okorafor, had already entered their names into the transfer portal.

He told whoever remained he respects their ability to make a move like his, if they are as convinced as he is that they're headed to greener pastures. If they liked the "taste" they got of him, there's a chance they could stick around to help with the rebuild.

Part of his pitch is a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson. He paraphrased it as, "Our chief want in life is someone who can make us do what we can.

"What's your potential? I'm getting you there," he added. "It's going to take pushing; if you're not down with that, you can't play here."

As for how many guys from his final Charleston squad will join him in the 502, Kelsey didn't have an answer. But he said to expect some members of his Cougars staff, in addition to "someone, or a couple, from the outside" to get in on the action soon.

Because his culture is an "energy bus — getting the right people in the right seats."

"You don't have to be the smartest in the room," he said, "but you better have the smartest room."

On Thursday, he was the loudest in the room. And everyone wearing Louisville gear was buying what he was selling.

Reach Louisville men's basketball reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Pat Kelsey outlines vision as Louisville basketball coach