Kaylene Smikle is already receiving high praise from her new Tennessee teammates.
Fatmata Janneh called her the next SEC Player of the Year, and Smikle plans to back that up.
"It's going to come true," Smikle said Aug. 3. "I've put in work. I know who I am, and I know what I bring to the table. Being around such a strong team, not just a starting five but 15 players who are going to be so hard to guard, is going to make it easier for me."
Smikle, a 6-foot guard, underwent season-ending knee surgery in December after playing through a nagging injury for the first month of last season at Maryland. She averaged 13.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in seven games before shutting it down. The season before, she led the Terrapins in scoring at 17.9 points per
game and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors.
With Smikle projected as a late first-round to early second-round pick in the 2027 WNBA Draft, she has clear goals for her final college season: Make up for the season she lost and put herself in position to reach the WNBA.
"I want more for myself," she said. "I feel like I've put in a lot of work, so coming on to a bigger stage, I want the recognition I feel like I deserve."
Kaylene Smikle knee surgery recovery update
Tennessee opened its first practice of the summer to the media Aug. 3, and Smikle was one of three Lady Vols, the others being Jada Eads and Aaliyah Moore, who didn't take part in many live-contact drills as they heal from knee injuries.
One thing was apparent in Smikle's limited practice showcase: Her jump shot hasn't left her. At the end of practice, the career 35% 3-point shooter on 4.1 attempts a game knocked down six consecutive 3-pointers from out of bounds in the corner, behind the left sideline. She said her rehab is ahead of schedule despite still being limited at practice.
"Rehab's been going really well," Smikle said. "I'm definitely ahead of schedule, but staying consistent, doing rehab almost every day has definitely helped during my process."
Coach Kim Caldwell said all three players have participated in portions of practice and some live work, but the staff is being deliberate about ramping them back.
"The goal is first game," Caldwell said. "Not July."
Eight months of rehab has required Smikle to further lean on what she learned through missing last season.
"Patience," she said. "Everyone's journey starts off different, they end different. So just trusting in the process, trusting in God and what he has planned for me has been the best thing I could have done."
Why Smikle transferred to Tennessee
Smikle committed to Tennessee on April 22, one of 13 transfers Caldwell brought in to rebuild a program coming off a 16-14 (53%) record, the worst winning percentage in its history.
Having already transferred once, from Rutgers to Maryland, Smikle has been here before. What stuck out to her during the process was how transparent Caldwell was about the demands of the summer and the work required to prepare her for this season and the WNBA.
"Just push me past levels of discomfort," Smikle said. "I've always worked out, yeah, I've been uncomfortable, but this is like a different type of discomfort than I've felt."
The demanding workouts haven't stopped the new-look Lady Vols from finding their rhythm. If anything, Smikle said, the shared commitment to working hard has helped the group bond quickly. The team spends time together swimming, watching sunsets and grilling, surprising Caldwell with their natural chemistry.
"They are truly friends," Caldwell said. "They have each other's backs. There's not an ego."
That was the point of the rebuild from the beginning for the coaching staff: Find players willing to embrace the work and then see how far they could push them.
"We wanted to see if they would break," Caldwell said. "And they didn't."
Smikle can attest to that all too well.
"When she said it was going to be hard, she wasn't lying," Smikle said.
Xavier Burton is a sports intern for Knox News. Email: Xavier.burton@knoxnews.com
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why Kaylene Smikle's teammates are calling her the next SEC Player of the Year
