Cavinder twins surprise new coach Tricia Cullop, teammates with tireless work ethic
Tricia Cullop knew, the moment she got word that twins Haley and Hanna Cavinder wanted to return to the University of Miami women’s basketball team after a year-long hiatus, that she would welcome them back with open arms.
Not only would she get a pair of workaholic guards who helped lead the Hurricanes to the 2023 Elite Eight under previous coach Katie Meier, but they would bring along their 4.5 million TikTok followers and surely increase ticket sales and media coverage.
“It was a no-brainer,” said Cullop, who replaced Meier after building a perennial winning program at the University of Toledo. “They’re two of the hardest workers I’ve ever coached, or played with, and that’s saying a lot, because I played with some All-Americans.”
The Cavinder twins are in the gym by 6 a.m. most mornings and constantly seek more film to study. They are especially motivated to play well in their final season, after retiring following the Elite Eight run and taking a year off from the game.
“They have an extreme hunger to want to be better, and they set the bar really high for the rest of the players,” Cullop said. “It’s great for my incoming freshman class, which was ranked 18th in the country, to see two kids who have a lot of press being such hard workers. When your best players are your hardest workers, you have something special.”
Forward Cam Williams, a transfer from the University of Michigan, mostly knew about the Cavinders from their social media accounts and said she was “pleasantly surprised” when she got to know them as teammates.
“They’re some of the hardest workers you’ll ever meet; they’re the first ones here every single day,” Williams said. “They’ve done an amazing job of setting the standard for this program and letting the younger kids know that we came here to win.”
Despite the twins’ celebrity status, their teammates say there is no resentment in the locker room.
“That could easily go two different directions,” Williams said. “But with them being here to work so hard, we’re happy that they’re able to monetize off the court as much as they do.”
The twins were among the first student athletes to sign endorsement deals after the NCAA decision in 2021 that college athletes could benefit from the use of their own name, image and likeness. They have cashed in to the tune of an estimated $2 million in endorsements, including a recent deal with Under Armour.
Still, perfecting their game and winning games is their top priority, which is why they came back. They are excited to reunite with guard Jasmyne Roberts and share the court with a formidable post duo of 6-3 Williams and 6-6 Natalija Marshall, a Notre Dame transfer.
“The competitive edge is something I really, really missed and was itching for,” Haley Cavinder said. “Hanna and I are doing whatever it takes to be the best basketball players and teammates we can be. That’s how we were raised. It’s in our DNA. There’s a lot of misconceptions about us, but once you know us, you know who we really are.”
Cullop said she fully supports players who can capitalize financially.
“NIL is a different world than what I came up through when I played and for most of my coaching career, it’s here, and we need to embrace it and do the best job we can with it,” Cullop said. “We’re still looking for high-character kids who work hard and have their priorities in the right place. But I don’t blame them for wanting to put their toe in those [NIL] waters, as well, because why shouldn’t they, if they can, and maybe leave college in a much better financial state than kids 10 years ago?”
The Hurricanes have an exhibition game on Oct. 27 at 2 p.m. against Palm Beach Atlantic and the regular season begins Nov. 4 at 11 a.m. against Stetson.