Holly Warlick focused on team, not herself

KNOXVILLE – With three All-Southeastern Conference players returning to play with the nation’s top recruiting class, expectations will be high when Holly Warlick enters her sixth season as Tennessee women’s basketball coach this fall.

Throw a new athletic director into the mix, and it could be a defining year for Warlick, who has taken the Lady Volunteers to three Elite Eights but no Final Fours in her half-decade atop one of the nation’s proudest programs.

Warlick, who has two years remaining on her contract, offered praise for Tennessee athletic director John Currie this past Thursday while laying out a stay-the-course approach for the season ahead.

“I’m not going into this year thinking, ‘You better win because you’re going to lose your job’,” Warlick said. “I’m going into this season (thinking), ‘How can I get this group better? How can I get this team more focused? How can we all get on the same page?’

“We’ve got an AD here that has been awesome. John, I’ve met with him, he’s met with all of our kids across the board. He’s a high-energy guy, and he’s coming in here wanting our programs to be successful.”

Some of the problems that plagued the Lady Vols during a 20-12 season that ended last month with a second-round loss in the NCAA tournament will be helped by the arrival of reinforcements in the coming months.

Touted freshmen Rennia Davis, Anastasia Hayes, Kasi Kushkituah and Evina Westbrook are scheduled to enroll this summer, while returning players Te’a Cooper and Cheridene Green are expected to be healthy next season after sitting out the 2016-17 schedule because of knee injuries.

Reserve forward Schaquilla Nunn is the only player with no eligibility remaining, and Warlick knows of no Lady Vols transferring, she said Thursday.

“That’s going to help us, when we have four more bodies out there and we can do a little bit more in practice and some things different on the court,” Warlick said. “We’re going to make the pace more like we typically have it, up-tempo. We’re going to press more, just some things that this team is very capable of. When you have more bodies, you can do what you’re really good at.”

Diamond DeShields, an All-SEC first-team selection, and Mercedes Russell, a second-team pick, would likely have been first-round selections in this year’s WNBA draft. Both have decided to return for their senior seasons.

Jaime Nared, another All-SEC second-teamer, is expected to return for her senior season, too. She, DeShields and Russell combined to average 49.1 points this past season.

DeShields expressed in an Instagram post announcing her return that she hopes to mentor the incoming freshmen.

“Developing my game further and playing for championship(s) are always part of the ideal plan, but giving these four young ladies an opportunity to be themselves, make mistakes, and still have the love they need and deserve is my first priority,” she wrote.

Warlick said she thinks the rest of Tennessee’s returning players share a similar mindset towards the newcomers.

As for herself, Warlick said her job is to make the team better and get it playing more cohesively. Warlick is where she needs to be and where she wants to be, the coach said.

“Don’t twist words when I say that I knew what I was getting into,” Warlick said. “I did, and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. But I’m doing it the way I think it’s going to get done, and we’re going to move this program forward, and it’s going to be a great opportunity for these young ladies.

“That’s what it should be. It shouldn’t be about me. It should be about this program, where we’re headed and the opportunities we’re giving young ladies. That’s how I look at it.”

Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.