Well, this really is a gut punch for Tennessee. When it rains, it pours. Tennessee fans can’t fault players for leaving the program after a mediocre season, but the Lady Vols have now lost two more players to the transfer portal after the poor season that included eight straight losses. Tennesse has already lost Alyssa Latham and Deniya Prawl, but now they have more leaving.
Lady Vols lose another player to the portal less than 2 hours after Deniya Prawl
The first domino to fall was Kaniya Boyd. The redshirt sophomore guard averaged just 1.6 points in 10.9 minutes, but he was expected to develop and take the next step. This still hurts, even if he wasn’t a major contributor on the stat sheet. Boyd will likely still garner Power-Four interest, but who knows what will happen.
The next Tennessee Lady Vol to enter the portal was Lauren Hurst. Averaging only 2.3 points as a true freshman, Hurst had a high ceiling and was a long-term developmental piece for Caldwell. She was a four-star recruit in the class of 2025 and was a top-50 player in the country. Seeing another young talent move on to hurt, but it's understandable.
Tennessee guard Kaniya Boyd announced that she plans to enter the transfer portal. She's the third Lady Vol to announce her intentions to transfer after Kim Caldwell's second season.
— Cora Hall (@corahalll) March 26, 2026
Boyd is a redshirt sophomore with two years of eligibility lefthttps://t.co/oIhuZIoe1U
NEWS: Lauren Hurst is planning on entering the transfer portal.
— Paige Dauer (@PaigeDauerFDP) March 26, 2026
The Tennessee native will leave after one season on Rocky Top.
She shot 48.8% from the field. pic.twitter.com/vtOuWatKiS
How do the Lady Vols bounce back from losing Kaniya Boyad and Lauren Husrt?
Tennessee is keeping Kim Caldwell in place for now, but the pressure is mounting. She’ll need to turn things around quickly or risk being on the hot seat next season. With fan impatience growing, the transfer portal will be key to any potential turnaround. With Tennessee already losing four players and potentially more, expect Caldwell to be extremely active in ther portal, adding more talent to the Vols roster.
Losing two young players is far from ideal, but Kim Caldwell will have to regroup quickly. This is shaping up to be one of the most important offseasons for Tennessee women’s basketball in years.