Basketball playing twins, TikTok stars Haley and Hanna Cavinder transfer to Miami
The University of Miami women’s basketball team just got a double dose of exposure on Thursday night when Fresno State’s basketball playing twins Haley and Hanna Cavinder – social media stars with over five million total followers – announced they are transferring to the Hurricanes program.
The twins, who boast four million TikTok followers and over 800,000 Instagram followers, have been at the forefront of NIL opportunities for college athletes.
READ MORE: Miami, meet Haley and Hanna. They’re big-time TikTok stars (and play basketball, too)
They have endorsement deals with Boost Mobile, Eastbay, Champs Six Star Nutrition, PSD Underwear, Celestial Seasonings Teas, and the WWE, which signed the pair as part of its “Next in Line” NIL program.
They have appeared on billboards in Times Square and some published estimates say the pair are worth $1 million in sponsorships. Their choreographed dance routines on TikTok and bikini and fashion shots on Instagram have made them among the most followed college athletes in the nation.
The Cavinders also happen to be outstanding basketball players. The 5-foot-6 guards are hard-working gym rats who combined to average 34.2 points through three seasons at Fresno State.
Haley was the Mountain West Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2020-21 and made all-conference as a freshman and a junior. She led Fresno State and the conference with 19.8 points per game last season and Hanna was second at 14.6. Haley was also the top rebounder at 9.4 per game and had a team-high 166 assists.
“When I get to Miami, I want to do whatever I can to help the team win,” Haley said. “I want to get to March Madness and be a part of something special. I’ll do whatever I can to help the team win.”
Hanna has also been a multi-year member of the All-Mountain West Team, receiving a nod in 2020 and 2021. She had 24 double-digit outings this past season.
“Coming into the offseason losing four impactful players, we felt like we had specific needs and Haley and Hanna absolutely helped us meet several of them,” Miami coach Katie Meier said. “They are huge pieces for our program.”
The twins said they knew once they stepped on campus at UM that they had found a new home.
“When we got on campus, there was just a vibe and a feeling you get when you know it is the right decision,” Haley Cavinder said. “I just think with Coach Katie and the leader she is and what she has done with the program, there is something that we were so attracted to, and I think we knew when leaving Miami that we wanted to come back.”
The Cavinders join a Hurricanes team that went 21-13 this past season, reached the first ACC championship game in school history and got to the second round of the NCAA tournament before losing to eventual champion South Carolina.
“They repeatedly told me how badly they want to win and win big,” Meier said. “We were looking for people to help us make deeper runs in March, so it was a perfect fit.”
“I think what Haley and I bring [to Miami] is our competitive nature,” Hanna said. “We have a lot of heart and we love basketball. I think our ability to shoot is a different role that we bring, too.”
They also will bring attention to a team that ranked 11th of 15 ACC teams last season with an average of 1,358 fans per game.
This story was originally published April 21, 2022 at 11:13 PM.