Kellie Harper has landed her first commitment from a five-star as the head coach of the Lady Vols basketball program.
Five-star guard Kaiya Wynn announced her commitment to the Lady Vols on Thursday in a social media post on Twitter. Wynn is ranked as the No. 23 overall player in the country and the top-ranked player in the state of Tennessee in ESPN’s 2021 HoopGurlz rankings. Wynn is the ninth-ranked guard in those ratings as well.
“Excited and blessed to announce that I have committed to the University of Tennessee,” Wynn said on Twitter. “GO VOLS!!”
Excited and blessed to announce that I have committed to the University of Tennessee??GO VOLS!! pic.twitter.com/1lJJiBoETG
— kaiya (@kaiyaw_2) April 30, 2020
The 5-foot-10 guard attends The Ensworth School in Nashville. As a junior this past season, Wynn led Ensworth to an undefeated 28-0 season and a record of 11-0 in their division. She was named TSWA Division II-AA All-State in 2018.
ESPN describes Wynn as an “explosively athletic guard” who has “handles and attacks the defense in transition game.”
“College-ready frame, mid-range game creator with emerging arsenal to the 3-point circle; quick-leaper, active on the glass,” ESPN writes. “A stock-riser in the class of 2021.”
Wynn is the first recruit to commit to Harper and the Lady Vol program as a five-star, but she’s the second five-star for Tennessee in the 2021 class. Karoline Striplin was ranked as a four-star at the time of her commitment to the Lady Vols in February, but ESPN has since bumped her up to a five-star in their latest rankings. Striplin is now ranked as the No. 48 overall player in the country.
Following the conclusion of the 2019-20 season, guards Zaay Green and Jazmine Massengill announced their intentions to transfer off the Lady Vols’ roster. UT also lost post players Lou Brown and Kamera Harris to graduation at the conclusion of the season.
Marta Suárez Rodriguez, a forward from Spain, committed to Tennessee last week. Suárez Rodriguez is the third addition to the 2020 recruiting class for Harper. The Lady Vols also signed four-star guard Destiny Salary out of Arkansas and local four-star forward Tess Darby in Tennessee. Salary and Darby signed with UT in November.
Harper also added her first graduate transfer this offseason with the addition of Liberty transfer Keyen Green. The 6-foot-1 forward/center, brings immediate help to a Tennessee post that desperately needs it, as will the addition of Suárez Rodriguez, who can run point, play on the wing, or play in the post.
Tennessee is coming off of a 21-10 season and 10-6 conference record in Harper’s first season as head coach. The Lady Vols were likely set to make the NCAA Tournament before the remainder of the season was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
