Tennessee Athletics Director Danny White gave his full support for Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell during an interview with SportsTalk on The Sports Animal on Wednesday morning. White’s comments come amidst a six-game losing streak for the Lady Vols to end the regular season, but Tennessee will be back in action this week during the SEC Tournament in Greenville, SC.
“I think she is doing a great job,” White said on WMNL. “I am as confident in her as I was the day I hired her – more confident. Just getting a chance to work closely with her and see how talented she is as a basketball mind, as a leader. This season has not met anyone’s expectations. Most importantly and most of all, hers. She is incredibly competitive. Not surprised to see the narrative around it – both positive and negative.”
The Lady Vols finished the season with a 16-12 overall record and an 8-8 record in SEC play. Tennessee began the conference slate going 8-2, but finished the season with a six-game losing streak before the tournament. Tennessee will be the 6-seed in the SEC Tournament this week and will play its first game Thursday night in the second round against the winner of 14-seed Missouri and 11-seed Alabama. The winner of the Lady Vols’ second-round matchup will get 3-seed Texas, which previously beat Tennessee by two points in mid-February.
White also stated during the radio interview on Wednesday that he wasn’t under the impression that anything would be a quick fix, and that it would take time to get things back to the standard that Tennessee expects within the athletics department. Caldwell is entering the final stretch of her second season in Knoxville.
“We expect to get the Lady Vols back to their rightful place in the women’s basketball world,” White said. “But nobody, including myself, thought this was ever going to be a quick fix. I think it takes time to get it right and to get where we want to be. Kim’s doing a great job. I think the recruiting has elevated significantly and really excited to see these young players continue to grow and next year’s additions as well.”
More From RTI: Kim Caldwell Reacts to Kaiya Wynn’s Departure from Lady Vols Basketball
White also commented on the Tennessee fanbase and the state of women’s college basketball as a whole.
“We have, I think, the most passionate fan base in the country and a storied women’s basketball program that we are working really hard to get back,” White said. “That is not an easy proposition and we didn’t expect it to be. Women’s basketball is extremely competitive. It’s awesome, I think not just for women’s basketball, but for women’s sports how many schools are investing at a high level in it now and the popularity of this sport has grown astronomically over the last 10 years or so.”
Caldwell was hired in April 2024 to take over for the fired Kellie Harper, who had led the program for the previous five seasons. In her debut year, Caldwell led Tennessee to a 24-10 record, an 8-8 SEC record, and a trip to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament. She also led the Vols to a victory over No. 5 UConn in February and upset 4-seed Ohio State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Tennessee has seen two player departures since the beginning of the preseason. Former Lady Vols guard Ruby Whitehorn was dismissed from the program just before the regular season after she was charged with simple possession following her suspension prior in the offseason for initial charges of aggravated burglary and domestic assault. In late February, Whitehorn announced on social media that she had joined Molly Miller’s Arizona State program. Whitehorn is not eligible to compete with the team this season, but has seemingly enrolled with the school.
On Tuesday, Tennessee guard Kaiya Wynn announced that she was stepping away from the program ahead of the postseason tournament slate. The news was first reported by Cora Hall of Knox News and confirmed to RTI through a Tennessee spokesperson. Wynn, a redshirt-senior with the program, did not play during Tennessee’s Senior Day game on Sunday. She appeared in nine games this season while averaging 0.6 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 0.4 assists per game. Her absence from the court during the Lady Vols’ Senior Day game drew criticism towards Caldwell and the program online.
The Lady Vols will open their SEC Tournament run on Thursday night at 8:30 p.m. ET in Greenville, S.C. Tennessee, the 6-seed, will play the winner between 11-seed Alabama and 14-seed Missouri. Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for live, on-site coverage of the Lady Vols’ run through the SEC Tournament this week.
Check out Danny White’s full 13-minute interview with SportsTalk on The Sports Animal here. White’s comments on Kim Caldwell begin at the 5:25 mark of the interview.
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