Fire Kim Caldwell

What games did KH ever coach Samara Spencer, Lazaria Spearman, and Ruby Whitehorn?
They weren’t even on the team and were 3 of the 5 double figure scorers on Coach Caldwell 24-10 team.
Talaysia Cooper and Kaniya Boyd were redshirted in her final season so she didn’t even coach them during a regular season.
I was thinking of th solid core she inherited from Harper in Darby, Hollinghead, Puckett, and Cooper.
 
When KH’s players graduated.
I think it was simply losing several seniors, a couple 5th year seniors and replacing them with freshmen.

Here is an example with NC State >>
NC State was a #1 seed in 2021 and 2022. They dropped to #7 seed 2023. In 2022 they lost 4 Seniors that 1,4,5,7 in scoring.

In 2024 and 2025 they were seeded #3 and #2 respectively. In 2026 they dropped to a #7 seed again.
In 2025 they lost James and Rivers #1 and #3 leading scorers.

So was Wes Moore a worse coach in 2023 and 2026 and/or did he just have a hard time replacing the seniors that left the previous years ?
 
Jacinta Manchester-LaPointe, 6.4 wing from Waldoboro Technical College (D II) is in the portal.

33.3 ppg, 4,6 apg, 6.6 rpg, 3bpg. She led her team, the Hamsters, to a conf. championship.
44% fg, 39.5% 3 pt %, 87% ft%. Rising sophomore, pre-med. Dean’s List.

Says she wants to play for a defense oriented coach in any place warmer than Maine.
I wonder if @Rooster1 has seen her play?

Says her favorite song is “I'm the Urban Spaceman”
Raises scorpions and does award winning origami.
Likes running through burning haystacks for fun.



 
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Big difference big difference. You can tell those D2 players to charge brick wall and they would different heart. Now that's the trick is getting elite talent to play hard all the time they are out there but not enough of them.
This is true. One thing that gets overlooked in these conversations is that motivation isn’t one-size-fits-all. Kim seemed genuinely confused as to why these specific players wouldn't run through a wall for her. And maybe she is an elite motivator, but based on the results so far, probably not.

It’s entirely possible for a coach to be effective with a certain type of player and then assume that approach translates universally. But athletes aren’t wired the same way, especially across different levels.

At lower tiers, you often see players driven by something very specific like proving themselves, earning a spot, fighting for opportunity. That creates a different kind of hunger. It’s internal, personal, and sometimes that alone can fuel extreme effort within almost any system.

But at the highest levels, the psychology shifts. These players already know they’re talented, or critically, believe they are. So the question becomes: what makes them fully buy in and push to their ceiling?

At that level, it’s usually not just “run harder” or “play harder.” It’s trust, credibility, and respect.
  • Do they believe in the coach?
  • Do they believe the system actually elevates them?
  • Do they feel like they’re building something meaningful and not just grinding for the sake of it?
The best players aren’t just going to run through a wall for anyone. But they will do it for coaches who:
  • have a track record
  • demand excellence but recognize it when it’s earned
  • create an environment that adds to what the player already is
  • are indeed elite motivators... or personalities who authentically connect with them in a way that creates a mutual respect for shared parts of each other's journey. but even in these situations, the coach has to also get results
 
I think it was simply losing several seniors, a couple 5th year seniors and replacing them with freshmen.

Here is an example with NC State >>
NC State was a #1 seed in 2021 and 2022. They dropped to #7 seed 2023. In 2022 they lost 4 Seniors that 1,4,5,7 in scoring.

In 2024 and 2025 they were seeded #3 and #2 respectively. In 2026 they dropped to a #7 seed again.
In 2025 they lost James and Rivers #1 and #3 leading scorers.

So was Wes Moore a worse coach in 2023 and 2026 and/or did he just have a hard time replacing the seniors that left the previous years ?
That is a great point and why I was saying losing those well coached seniors hurt. No he isn’t a worse coach at the point when he was seeded 7th but I trust that he has the skills to rebuild a team because he has a solid tenure and history behind him. I do not trust that at this point with KC because I do not view her as the same caliber of coach as Wes Moore.
 
Probably need to stop talking about something that isn't happening and start to see what kind of team were going to have next season. Not getting fired it would have happened five days ago no reason to wait longer. Team building begins today that is what I am concentrating and interested in from here on.
🤣🤣🔥🔥🔥😵
 
I don’t understand why anyone believes the system will work against the teams that a national contender will face. It can beat some teams because it is unique but not long term against teams we play.
a whole bunch of coaches everywhere preceded her in the coaching ranks, and she’s the first to figure out a novel way to win championships at this level? Naw.
 
This is true. One thing that gets overlooked in these conversations is that motivation isn’t one-size-fits-all. Kim seemed genuinely confused as to why these specific players wouldn't run through a wall for her. And maybe she is an elite motivator, but based on the results so far, probably not.

It’s entirely possible for a coach to be effective with a certain type of player and then assume that approach translates universally. But athletes aren’t wired the same way, especially across different levels.

At lower tiers, you often see players driven by something very specific like proving themselves, earning a spot, fighting for opportunity. That creates a different kind of hunger. It’s internal, personal, and sometimes that alone can fuel extreme effort within almost any system.

But at the highest levels, the psychology shifts. These players already know they’re talented, or critically, believe they are. So the question becomes: what makes them fully buy in and push to their ceiling?

At that level, it’s usually not just “run harder” or “play harder.” It’s trust, credibility, and respect.
  • Do they believe in the coach?
  • Do they believe the system actually elevates them?
  • Do they feel like they’re building something meaningful and not just grinding for the sake of it?
The best players aren’t just going to run through a wall for anyone. But they will do it for coaches who:
  • have a track record
  • demand excellence but recognize it when it’s earned
  • create an environment that adds to what the player already is
  • are indeed elite motivators... or personalities who authentically connect with them in a way that creates a mutual respect for shared parts of each other's journey. but even in these situations, the coach has to also get results

Are you channeling your best Pat Summit?
 
My parents used to laugh about a story about a father sitting at a dinner table and his toddler in his high chair was crying, and the father says, “Shut up and drink your beer.”

That’s what it feels like DW is saying now to all Lady Vol fans.

That made me laugh - but could see many men saying that!
 
If a few months ago was 3 yrs ago . . .

Kim Caldwell is 37 yrs old, has been an HC for a decade, has been a D1 HC for 3 full seasons, has coached nearly 100 D1 games.

Can we take young and inexperienced out of the conversation for the sake of accuracy?

Also, IMO it’s blatantly sexist to blame the pregnancy and baby. I wonder how many male coaches became first time fathers .
How many first time fathers actually bore children? How many had to jiggle breast feeding schedules with shootarounds?
 
Are you channeling your best Pat Summit?
Pat Summitt: (n) Anomaly. Elite motivator. Authentic and credible. Driven. Ambitious. Visionary. Players, fans and the like would all line up voluntarily to run through any wall for her. 8 national championships but laid the foundation for all other women's basketball success that would someday follow. Broke the mold. Irreplaceable. No one like her.
 
I don’t understand why anyone believes the system will work against the teams that a national contender will face. It can beat some teams because it is unique but not long term against teams we play.
a whole bunch of coaches everywhere preceded her in the coaching ranks, and she’s the first to figure out a novel way to win championships at this level? Naw.
No one really believes it. Some important ones, like Danny White, are pretending to.
 
As I said earlier, name me a coach that would come to Tennessee with this crap show.
With Kim gone, the air would clear substantially, leaving for the new Coach, high pay, a prestigious program, beautiful facilities, a fan base relieved the previous Coach is gone and ready to welcome the new Coach with open arms and wallets. Anyone would understand why the change had to be made.
 
With Kim gone, the air would clear substantially, leaving for the new Coach, high pay, a prestigious program, beautiful facilities, a fan base relieved the previous Coach is gone and ready to welcome the new Coach with open arms and wallets. Anyone would understand why the change had to be made.
I believe this too. It is TN!!
 
With Kim gone, the air would clear substantially, leaving for the new Coach, high pay, a prestigious program, beautiful facilities, a fan base relieved the previous Coach is gone and ready to welcome the new Coach with open arms and wallets. Anyone would understand why the change had to be made.
Women’s basketball has turned on Kim. Fans, her team (as a whole), former players, and announcers. Can you imagine her press conferences next season? Firing her would be a mercy at this point. For us and for her.
 
Women’s basketball has turned on Kim. Fans, her team (as a whole), former players, and announcers. Can you imagine her press conferences next season? Firing her would be a mercy at this point. For us and for her.
I think mercy for KC would be to accept a buyout and leave before things get even worse and yes that’s possible.
 

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