Lady Vols Head Coach Kim Caldwell has been here before.
The early-season frustrations, the inconsistency, the steep learning curve, they all remind her of a previous team that eventually found its footing.
This year’s Lady Vols are a young group still searching for rhythm.
They have opened the season with more struggle than stability. However, Caldwell sees parallels to her last team in the Division II ranks at Glenville State.
“It took a lot of time,” Caldwell revealed.
At Glenville, Caldwell noted she had 12 or 13 new players on the roster.
The similarities offer her perspective and patience.
“I am going back and comparing notes between that team and we are right on pace for how upset we are, for how uncomfortable we are, for how we are kind of in this dark space where we just need to push through it and get over the hump,” Caldwell said.
As soon as the team can string together some consistently in game, things will change.
“When the ball goes in, a lot of things are going to change,” Caldwell said.
Even so, Caldwell insists that understanding the process doesn’t excuse the need for urgency.
“It’s just going to take a while.”
“It’s a fine line, because I know that this is normal, but I can’t just be like, ‘Oh, this is normal. We’ll figure it out,’” she said. “We still have to do things to figure it out. We still have to move with a sense of urgency. This is not okay. This is not acceptable. We’re not going to win like this. We have to move like we have to make some changes and fix it,” Caldwell said.
For the Lady Vols, the challenge lies not only in correcting mistakes, but in believing the improvements will come.
“Your players have to say the course and understand that all of their numbers and everything that they are doing right now is only going to get better,” Caldwell said. “And you break that down. You explain that to them. And you continue to move forward. And I’m thankful for this week that we have been able to work on some things.”
On the court, Caldwell sees the biggest strides still ahead.
Eliminating mental lapses, improving shot quality, and sharpening defensive pressure remain top priorities.
“I think being able to play through mistakes. I think you obviously see some walls on the floor where we just lose our minds for a second and it just horrendous basketball and cutting those down in practice while still having a high volume practice, seeing more shots go in, taking quality shots, having our pressure look the way it should look,” Caldwell said.
The Lady Vols may be in the early stages of building where frustration is at the forefront, but Caldwell’s confidence stems from experience.
She’s seen a team like this before. And she remembers how that one finished.
The Lady Vols return to action on Thursday night against MTSU.
