Kim Caldwell gets crucial first piece in the Transfer Portal with a sharpshooting guard

The offseason has been one to remember or forget for Tennessee Lady Vols fans. The entire team from last season is gone, whether through the transfer portal or graduation, and Tennessee even lost its top recruit. Everything has felt like it’s falling apart for Kim Caldwell, but finally, the Lady Vols got some much-needed good news.

The first domino has fallen for Kim Caldwell, and it was greatly required for the morale of the program. Tennessee picked up a 5-foot-9 guard in  Avery Mills from Liberty, who has two years of eligibility left. In 2025, as a sophomore, Mills put up a great stat line, averaging 15.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 42.7% from beyond the arc.

Ironically, as a freshman, Mills played in Knoxville and had an amazing game against Tennessee. Mills scored 19 points, shooting 7-9 from the field and 3-5 from three-point land in just her fourth ever college game. Maybe this game was stuck in the back of Kim Caldwell's head, and when she entered the portal, she had to get her? Either way, this is a big-time add, and it has to be the first of many for the Lady Vols to get back on track.

Avery Mills was a major boost for the Lady Vols

This was a perfect first addition for Caldwell. The Lady Vols added an elite shooter who has proved she can compete at the high major level. This was a nice add, no doubt, but as I said, there will have to be plenty more of these before fans will even begin to have any hope for next year.

Losing an entire team, even in the NIL era of college sports, is quite crazy, and it will be tough to build a roster of 13 new players, but it won't be impossible. Caldwell just needs to keep recruiting hard and get players who will buy into the Lady Vols program.

It will be interesting to se how these next few weeks go for Caldwell, as its a make or break year for her, so she needs to add some serious talent.