A month into the job, Tennessee Lady Vols head coach Kim Caldwell has done wonders to save her personnel. Wanting to install her up-tempo style with a team designed to do the exact opposite, she was able to retain Jewel Spear, the one player who could do it, and add two transfer forwards.
That covered the size and athleticism bases that Caldwell needs to run her system. Next, though, came the need for guards who could sun the system and score efficiently. She may have found that with her most recent transfer, but the question is wide open to this point.
Arkansas Razorbacks transfer guard Samara Spencer committed to the Tennessee Lady Vols over the weekend. Spencer, who stands at 5’7″, averaged 13.9 points and over one steal per game this past year. She has averaged double figures in each of her three season with the Hogs and brings a ton more athleticism.
However, the question surrounding Spencer is her three-point shooting. In 2021-22, she was SEC Freshman of the Year by averaging 12.2 points per game and shooting 34.4 percent from three. As her scoring went up, though, her three-point shooting went down.
In her sophomore season, she shot 32.3 percent from three, and this past year, she was an abysmal 26 percent from three. She also went from hitting nearly two a game to barely hitting more than one. So what happened? Well, to be fair, her attempts dropped, but it really just looks like a law of averages issue.
Anyway, the key question to Spencer heading to Rocky Top for her senior season is whether or not she can get that three-point shooting back. If she can, then UT may have just enough firepower to run Caldwell’s style to some success next year and even make an immediate splash.
Caldwell may not be done, though, and she may still have more work to do. Danny White did insist he made the hire with the thought of immediate success next year. There’s still a question as to whether or not the Tennessee Lady Vols can pull that off, though.
