On Tuesday, Tennessee Lady Vols head coach Kellie Harper tweeted out a video with the word “BOOM” on it. Nobody knew what it meant, but a day later, their questions were answered. Missouri State Lady Bears graduate transfer forward Jasmine Franklin announced her commitment to UT.
B🍊🍊M !! pic.twitter.com/Rd8J1bImAX
— Kellie Harper (@KellieHarper) April 19, 2022
Harper and Franklin have reunited, as Harper was Missouri State’s head coach before heading to Rocky Top. She recruited and signed Franklin and coached her in 2018-2019, when she was a freshman. The two went to the Sweet 16 together, with Franklin as a role player.
Since then, the 6’1″ forward from Arkansas has blossomed into a star. She should immediately fill the void left by Alexus Dye at the four. In fact, her transfer to the Tennessee Lady Vols is in many ways identical to Dye from last year.
Both joined Rocky Top as graduate transfers at the four. They were also both players of the year in their respective conferences. Dye, who came from the Troy Trojans, was the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year in 2021. Franklin was the Missouri Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year that same season.
Last. year, 11 games in, Franklin tore her ACL and missed the rest of the year. However, assuming she is fully healthy and ready to go this year, she provides everything for UT at the four that Dye provided, and she should be a perfect pairing with Tamari Key down low.
Before getting injured, Franklin was averaging a double-double at 14.9 points and 12.1 rebounds per game. She was also averaging nearly two steals and two and a half blocs per game, showing her defensive prowess on the perimeter and underneath the basket.
In her last full season, she averaged 11.8 and 9.7 rebounds per game along with over two steals and nearly one block. Simply put, she is an elite player for the Tennessee Lady Vols and will immediately become a reliable contributor if she can stay health.
Combine Franklin with the addition of Mississippi State Bulldogs transfer Rickea Jackson, and Rocky Top is probably deeper in the post than they were last year. That’ll especially be the case if Marta Suarez can return to form when she gets fully healthy.
Now, there is still no true replacement for Rae Burrell, but Harper’s true inside-out system doesn’t necessarily need elite wings like Burrell to thrive anyway. If she has a deep rotation of elite talent in the post, elite perimeter defenders and a couple players who can shoot the three, she can run her system.
That’s exactly what she has now. Franklin can join Jackson, Key and Karoline Striplin to help UT dominate down low. As long as there aren’t any key injuries like there were last year to Keyen Green, this rotation could be unstoppable.
We have to start seriously talking about the Tennessee Lady Vols as national championship contenders now. Harper finally has the team fully constructed in the way she wants it. On the heels of a Sweet 16 season riddled by injuries, that could make this team elite next year.