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Tennessee Lady Vols 2021-2022 season preview: Frontcourt

By Caleb Calhoun

Tennessee Lady Vols forward Alexus Dye (2) during practice in Knoxville, Tenn. on Tuesday, October 5, 2021.Kns Wbball Practice
Tennessee Lady Vols forward Alexus Dye (2) during practice in Knoxville, Tenn. on Tuesday, October 5, 2021.Kns Wbball Practice /
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Tennessee center Tamari Key (20) at Lady Vols Basketball Media Day in Knoxville, Tenn. on Thursday, October 28, 2021.Kns Sec Media Day
Tennessee center Tamari Key (20) at Lady Vols Basketball Media Day in Knoxville, Tenn. on Thursday, October 28, 2021.Kns Sec Media Day /

Biggest questions

1. What leaps did Tamari Key and Emily Saunders make at center?

Length being an advantage has been a staple of Kellie Harper’s tenure with the Tennessee Lady Vols. She wants to play an inside-out game. With Rennia Davis gone, that needs to become a huge advantage. Tamari Key should become the best center in the SEC.

If Key can be as dominant as she was at the end of last year, and if Emily Saunders can develop enough to provide help off the bench, UT’s length could become even more of an advantage this year. Heck, they could run both players together at times for an advantage. Their development will tell a lot about the frontcourt.

2. Who will start at forward?

Rennia Davis leaving and Marta Suárez being out for the year makes this an obvious question. Obviously, somebody has to start at the four. Keyen Green getting healthy and Alexus Dye transferring make those two the likely options.

However, what if Kellie Harper decides to run one of the forwards at the wing instead of the guards, who we’ll get to later? Does that mean Green and Dye both start? If she just runs one at the four, who starts between them?

3. Which freshman joins the rotation?

This ties into the previous question. Could Sara Puckett or Karoline Striplin overtake Dye or Green as a rotational player or starter? At least one forward has to be in the rotation on the wing, making it likely that Puckett or Striplin joins the rotation.

Who will do it between them? Both are finesse fours, so they can play the three in Harper’s system. Could they both join it? This program is loaded enough now where neither is likely to start, but one of these freshmen is going to fit in somewhere.