After talking with the program’s trainer, director of operations, strength and conditioning coach, and every individual member of her staff in the offseason, Tennessee women’s basketball coach Kim Caldwell had nearly three full pages of notes of things the Lady Vols could alter, change or tweak.
?Caldwell isn’t settling for status quo in her second season at the helm of one of the most storied programs in women’s college basketball. She wants to see the Lady Vols back in the mix for national title contention on an annual basis.
“We’ve really become obsessed about getting better and, obviously, your second time around is much more familiar,” Caldwell says. “You know your scouts, not every team you play is brand-new. You’re not having to do everything for the first time.
“But there’s a lot of different things that we want to grow upon and just flat out change where I think we can get some points back.”
Tennessee finished 24-10 and reached the Sweet 16 in Caldwell’s first season on Rocky Top and only her second season coaching at the NCAA Division I level.
With a strong transfer class and a talented group of freshmen, the Lady Vols started the season ranked No. 8 in the nation. They were picked to finish fourth in the SEC by the media and fifth by the coaches.
Challenges from the start
Tennessee opened the season with an 80-77 loss to No. 9 NC State in an entertaining nationally-televised game in Greensboro, North Carolina, that went down to the final buzzer.
“We scheduled this game to see where we were,” Caldwell says. “We wanted to see where we were early, so we had time to fix it. I think that’s exactly what we got out of it.
“We have a lot of things we can fix; we can get a lot better. And we know where we’re at. That’s a very good basketball team. That team is going to be playing deep in March and we want to be, too.”
The Lady Vols return their top two scorers and rebounders from last season in redshirt junior guard Talaysia Cooper (16.6 points, 5.6 rebounds) and senior forward Zee Spearman (11.7 points, 6.0 rebounds).
A few days before the start of the season, Caldwell dismissed senior guard Ruby Whitehorn after Whitehorn was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession. That came on the heels of an August arrest of Whitehorn for misdemeanors of aggravated trespassing and aggravated burglary that led to a suspension from the team. Whitehorn started 28 games last season and averaged 11.6 points.
“We have standards in this program, and it’s a sad situation. It’s a difficult situation,” Caldwell says. “I feel bad for this current team that we have, and time will tell if it’s the right choice for this team. But I have no doubt that it’s the right choice for the team four or five years from now.”
Talented newcomers
UT’s transfer class includes senior forward Janiah Barker, senior guard Nya Robertson and senior forward Jersey Wolfenbarger.
Robertson led SMU in scoring last season (18.5 points) while hitting 62 3-pointers. Wolfenbarger arrives from LSU, where she averaged 4.6 points and 3.4 rebounds last season.
Barker started her career at Texas A&M before transferring to UCLA, where she helped the Bruins reach the Final Four last season while earning Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year honors.
“Janiah has been fantastic; she’s a good leader for us. I think we are still figuring out how great she can be,” Caldwell says. “She can shoot the three, she can get to the rim, she’s a phenomenal passer, she’s a lockdown defender. … it takes some time to fully (understand), ‘hey this is how we do it, this is how good you can be,’ and I think once it clicks for her – and it’s starting to click – I think the sky is the limit.”
The freshmen class is highlighted by McDonald’s All-Americans Mia Pauldo, Deniya Prawl and Jaida Civil as well as Pauldo’s twin sister, Mya, and Lauren Hurst.
“They are our foundation. We’re building around them. Not a whole lot more needs to be said,” Caldwell says. “They’re phenomenal. They compete. They push our upperclassmen to be better. Our upperclassmen are playing in fear that our freshmen are going to take their spot and our freshmen are going to play. They’re helping us right away. They’re changing our culture right away and we’re building around them.”
Leading the way forward
Mia Pauldo is eager to be a cornerstone for the future of the program.
“I feel like Coach Kim is trying to build that culture back, where she brings a lot of All-Americans and Top 100 freshmen into the program, and I think she’s done a great job with that,” Mia Pauldo says. “With all five of us, and honestly, it feels great to be a part of that, especially because everyone’s starting to know our names.”
Caldwell, who coached last season while pregnant and returned a few days after giving birth to her first child, is starting from a more comfortable position this season. She knows all the faces on the roster and has more familiarity with how things operate.
The team is built more in her vision and has the potential to make a deeper postseason run.
“Without a doubt we’re more athletic. It’s obviously the most athletic team I’ve ever had,” Caldwell says. “I like athletes. I like players that can score. I like players that can go. I like players that can defend. I like players with a high motor that can get up and down. We have a team full of them.”