KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee Women's Basketball lost two recruits' commitments following the firing of head coach Kellie Harper.
Finley Chastain, a guard who is a top prospect in the Class of 2027, first announced her decommitment on Monday after the news came out. Nyla Brooks, a five-star guard in the Class of 2025, also announced she will look into other options to play after the leadership shakeup.
WBIR spoke with Brooks about her decision on Tuesday. She was in shock at the news of Kellie Harper being fired.
"I thought it was an April Fool's joke," she said. "It wasn't a good day at all."
Brooks said she developed a strong connection with Harper. She said she really liked Harper's family and the assistant coaches as well.
When Brooks scored her 1,000 career point in high school, Harper made a surprise visit to watch that game. Brooks was grateful her coach made the trip.
"She left practice to come," Brooks said. "Even with the tournaments coming up, big games coming up, she came to watch me play. We won by like 30 or something like that, but she came and watched the whole game and that meant a lot to me."
Harper was a big reason why she committed. Even though she has decommitted, she said she isn't counting out the Lady Vols quite yet.
"I love Tennessee, I love the environment, I love the people there," Brooks said. "When it comes down to my future, a lot can be set down on the table. Depending on who is coaching and depending on how I still feel for Tennessee with the new coaching staff, Tennessee will be a consideration for sure."
