Celeste played hard, and gave it her all at Texas; we don't reach the Elite 8 without her playing her hardest; she never packed it in no matter what issues she was facing. Her great play down the stretch will actually pay dividends for Vic's program in the short-term as it brought a lot of attention to Texas. Her reasons for leaving Texas are hers, and I certainly don't know what they are for certain.
But, in her first season at Texas, her parents attended many games in person in Austin.. In her second season, pandemic forced a lot of no-fan games at the FEC. So, even if her parents were able to fly down (if they felt safe doing so), they couldn't attend games. Conversely, Duke canceled pretty much their entire season (which I still don't understand); so, if she had been at Duke this past season, she wouldn't have been able to play the game she loves.
If she thinks the "Cameron Crazies" support women's hoops, she's in for an eye-opening experience with fan attendance. While Kara is bringing in some good to great transfers, the ones I've paid attention to (Nyah Green and Celeste) play the same position (SG/SF), as does Jordyn Oliver (who based on her twitter follows, definitely has an affinity for Duke).
NC State and North Carolina are certainly loading up on talent, too And, Jeff Waltz keeps the talent rolling into Louisville. ACC will be tough, as even Fortner got her Georgia Tech team to the Sweet 16 this season. It won't be easy for Kara learning on the job; for sure she'll take her lumps. Since she didn't really get to coach this season, I have no idea if she will get it done at Duke or not.
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Agree x 4
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Last edited: Apr 12, 2021