Kim Caldwell (Rookie Coach of the Year-WBCA) is named Head Coach of Iconic Lady Vols WBB

[mudcat1973]

I really wish we had a good idea who they are considering lol.

Watch for the raise out of Blue

That tell which schools said back off my Coach

 

[lfvol]

I've not read anything about whether Kentucky had an interest in rehiring Mtichell or not. There was an On3 report
after Elzy got sacked that Mitchell "was expected to be" Kentucky's next coach--but it had no sourcing. That would certainly have made sense after his previous success in Lexington--if, in fact, he wants to get back into coaching. But it didn't happen. Can't say why. They opted to hire Brooks--who did a good job of building the Virginia Tech program in his 8/9 years there. He took the Hokies to the Final Four last year--but I would have bet that that was going to be the high-water mark for him at that program. And maybe Kentucky, too. He's 55/56 years old. The fact that Mitchell has been out of coaching for three years may have worked against him somewhat, but hard to know.

Mitchell, 53, never took Kentucky to a Final Four. He did take the Wildcats to the Elite Eight twice--in back-to-back-years: 2011/12 and 2012/13. In the subsequent 7 seasons there were 2 Sweet 16 appearances, and 3 times beaten in the 2nd round.

Hope we don’t go that way. His results fell off badly his last couple of years and Barnhart knows him and his issues very well. He hired Brooks for $7.7M for five when he could have hired Mitchell for half that. I doubt DW goes that route.

 

[lfvol]

You really don't think White knows who he is going to hire when he fired Kellie? Seriously?

He probably had a target list. But he targeted two football coaches before hiring the guy down the hall in football. You don’t always get your first choice but I have confidence in him.

 

[Volfan2012]

From the article:

The Kentucky women’s basketball program is fully committed to NIL (even hiring a full-time NIL coordinator last offseason),…

That doesn’t sound like the school is not involved.

Fairly easy to get involved now without any problems cause AD's are certainly looking for donations from boosters to collectives and then collectives use the money to get the players. Quite a lot of talk that DW tried to arrange funding for Kellie and one more season and was met with no, but would do so for a different coach. We never will know whether it is true or false until a new coach gets here and some top players start coming into the program. If that happens then it is certainly going to be true that the NIL backing is being provided.

 

[Volfaninfl2]

I think the wife/husband combo is a deal breaker for White. Could be wrong but seems like he’s not a fan. Don’t think he finds it appropriate to have assistant coaches reporting to him while the others report to that person’s spouse.

If I were in his position there is just no way.

At Gonzaga, just based on what the Fortier’s have mentioned, it does actually sound like Craig reports directly to Lisa and not the athletics department. At a smaller school you can get away with that. At a place like UT and in the SEC most just aren’t going to go for it.

Alabama and Vanderbilt “go for it”.

 

[mr.checkerboards]

You really don't think White knows who he is going to hire when he fired Kellie? Seriously?

I think he has a list of candidates he wants, and there have been conversations with agents. But 100% no, nobody does until the dotted line is signed.

 

[djtee]

Carly Thibault-DuDonis is on the list

 

[utvolpj]

Carly Thibault-DuDonis is on the list

Whose list?

 

[Volfaninfl2]

The local reporters have been saying it. Sadly, it all makes sense now. Earl(who cmon bro, show up) told us the last couple weeks NIL was finally coming together. Then sure enough, Coop got a car deal. I wanted to think NIL loosening up was going to give KJH one more chance, but instead, she got fired. Appaarently the only way NIL got flowing was the promise of a new coach.

IMO, this all started happening after the cursed 1.1 second. Fair or unfair, that image was so, so strong and ultimately defining for KJH. I was in another state the next week w people who only slightly engage in WBB and its the first thing they brought up with me. Not just the game, but KJH and that head dropped image. I'll bet the wheels got set in motion right there. Donors notified, agents contacted. Train could have been slowed with a decent NCAA tourney run, but that wasn't to be either.

I don't think DW makes this move without two things: sufficient NIL in place and sufficient interest shown by major coaching players.

That game was near the end of this year. What was the excuse at the beginning of the year, (again, after 2 Sweet Sixteen finishes), and the year before that, when UConn bought Slade?

 

[VolFuture]

Carly Thibault-DuDonis is on the list

 

[VolFuture]

Whose list?

The mentally impaired

Down there with Molly Miller

 

[djtee]

Whose list?

Tennessee

 

[NOLACHUCKEYTOM]

DW is a really smart guy! Keep it totally quite until papers are signed. No sense letting the boards go crazy with half fired up and supportive of the new coach and half upset and bashing the new coach to be. Keeps everything more under control with current players, current commits, and players in the portal that might still be interested. Gives the new coach more of a chance to hit the ground fired up and running and moving the program in the right direction! GBO

 

[VolFuture]

DW is a really smart guy! Keep it totally quite until papers are signed. No sense letting the boards go crazy with half fired up and supportive of the new coach and half upset and bashing the new coach to be. Keeps everything more under control with current players, current commits, and players in the portal that might still be interested. Gives the new coach a chance more of a chance to hit the ground fired up and running and moving the program in the right direction! GBO

Delaying the inevitable? Heard that one before

 

[NOLACHUCKEYTOM]

Delaying the inevitable? Heard that one before

Delayed just to buy a little time to get ducks in a row.

 

[volfan__18]

Carly Thibault-DuDonis is on the list

lol. i highly doubt that.

 

[VolBall09]

Alabama and Vanderbilt “go for it”.

And?


Why on God’s green Earth would he want to be like Vandy or Alabama women’s basketball?

 

[VolFuture]

Average TN fan

 

[Voluble2]

So schools are buying players now. Are the Coaches of each sport supposed to be knocking on business doors asking for money to buy recruits? I don’t think so. This sounds like Danny White’s responsibility, but he put donations he received into the stadium or other places, instead of the Lady Vols basketball program. So, even though we had just gone to the Sweet Sixteen twice, and recruits visited and were interested, they went elsewhere, because Kellie had no money to outbid other schools. We knew of several of those players.

So now, to cover his own failure, DW says/implies that our donors did not want to support Coach Kellie, (even after 2 Sweet Sixteen finishes), and he fires her. So now, better late than never, the new Coach will have money to outbid other schools for players.

Yeah, it better be a big hire, and one that can win.

That is not how any of this works.

 

[Ratvol]

DW is a really smart guy! Keep it totally quite until papers are signed. No sense letting the boards go crazy with half fired up and supportive of the new coach and half upset and bashing the new coach to be. Keeps everything more under control with current players, current commits, and players in the portal that might still be interested. Gives the new coach more of a chance to hit the ground fired up and running and moving the program in the right direction! GBO

There's plenty of time for the crazys to come out after the announcement. They'll burn themselves out if it gets leaked too early... Lord they will be jumping out the basement windows in droves...

 

[Voltopia]

I love how everyone and their damn grandmother says "Candace Parker" without a one of them ever asking Candace Parker if she even wants to be a coach, much less coach at the volcanic furnace that is Tennessee and its expectations.

It's about on par with those people who blabber about Peyton Manning coming back to coach at Tennessee. Manning, who had never coached, who'd shown no inclination to be a coach, who makes millions and millions and millions to talk and make appearances, and yet there was always someone coming out of the woodwork with "you should ask Peyton Manning."

 

[Volfan2012]

I love how everyone and their damn grandmother says "Candace Parker" without a one of them ever asking Candace Parker if she even wants to be a coach, much less coach at the volcanic furnace that is Tennessee and its expectations.

It's about on par with those people who blabber about Peyton Manning coming back to coach at Tennessee.

Candace is playing basketball with the Aces and I seriously doubt she was even on the list.

 

[brittannica]

Would love for Candace to be involved in some capacity in fundraising and recruitment eventually tho.

 

[Volfaninfl2]

I think the only player we need to keep is Spear, I wouldn’t mind everyone else leaving. But also Cooper and Boyd are unknown for me so maybe they can stay as well but that’s it.

I’d like to keep Avery, she’s quick, can create her own shot, and shot 3s as a freshman. Injured, then didn’t get much playing time this year, behind Rickea and others with seniority.

Keep Wells, too.

 

[Volfan2012]

Would love for Candace to be involved in some capacity in fundraising and recruitment eventually tho.

I'd take her to coach here she has plenty of basketball knowledge and can relate with players. She could recruit big with the help of NIL, Just not her time right now I assume unless we see her announced by Danny White in the next few days.