University of Memphis Athletics
Simmons Adds McKinney, Wright to Staff
May 24, 2023 | Women's Basketball
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Memphis Tiger women's basketball staff continues to grow as head coach Alex Simmons announces the hiring of Keondra "Keke" McKinney as the Director of Player Development & Personnel and LaKaitlin Wright as the Director of Recruiting.
"Keke and LaKaitlin are two former student-athletes who have given back to the game in a plethora of ways; they were student-athletes at great universities and now have the opportunity to continue to elevate and build their careers at the University of Memphis. I'm excited to have them a part of our Memphis family," said Simmons. "They will both work closely with our post and forward position, have a huge hand in recruiting aspects of the program, and be great mentors and motivators to our players and staff."
McKinney comes to Memphis after spending last season at Gardner-Webb University as a graduate assistant where she aided in player development, individual workouts, assisted with community service opportunities, created and presented individual and team film and assisted the Director of Basketball Operations.
While on staff for the Runnin' Bulldogs, McKinney helped with personal and skills training within the program where she emphasized on academic success, nutrition and health, and basic basketball terminology.
McKinney played for four seasons at the University of Kentucky where she helped the team to three NCAA National Tournament appearances and was named to the SEC All-Academic Team in four consecutive seasons. McKinney would play her final season at UNC Charlotte where she was named as the C-USA Defensive Player of the Year after averaging just over six points and grabbed 8.06 rebounds per game. McKinney would go on to record six double-doubles with the 49ers while leading the conference with 71 blocks.
A member of the Conference USA All-Defensive Team, McKinney would pull down a team-best 258 rebounds while helping to lead the team to a C-USA Championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
McKinney, a native of Knoxville, Tenn., graduated from Kentucky with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work in May 2021. She would go on to earn a Certificate in Early Childhood Mental Health from Charlotte in May 2022.
Wright comes to Memphis after spending the past two seasons as a Graduate Assistant at Clemson University where she helped the program in many different areas that included preparing and executing scouting reports, advising student-athletes with academic support and helping Clemson women's basketball to their highest GPA in program history and coordinating aspects of team operations.
Along with her duties within the Clemson program, Wright played a major role in facilitating recruiting visits and managing information within their databases. Wright was part of a staff that acquired the Tigers best recruiting class to date, including 2022 McDonald's All-American Ruby Whitehorn.
Wright played for two seasons at Towson University where she was named as a team captain and served as a member of the Team Leadership Council. Wright also served on the executive boards for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, the Colonial Athletic Association United for Change and Athletes for Inclusion, Diversity and Equity.
Prior to Towson, Wright started her collegiate career at Mercer University where she helped the team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances while serving on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
Wright graduated from Towson in 2021 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Gerontology. She will receive her Master of Science in Athletic Leadership from Clemson later this month.
How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Basketball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
"Keke and LaKaitlin are two former student-athletes who have given back to the game in a plethora of ways; they were student-athletes at great universities and now have the opportunity to continue to elevate and build their careers at the University of Memphis. I'm excited to have them a part of our Memphis family," said Simmons. "They will both work closely with our post and forward position, have a huge hand in recruiting aspects of the program, and be great mentors and motivators to our players and staff."
McKinney comes to Memphis after spending last season at Gardner-Webb University as a graduate assistant where she aided in player development, individual workouts, assisted with community service opportunities, created and presented individual and team film and assisted the Director of Basketball Operations.
While on staff for the Runnin' Bulldogs, McKinney helped with personal and skills training within the program where she emphasized on academic success, nutrition and health, and basic basketball terminology.
McKinney played for four seasons at the University of Kentucky where she helped the team to three NCAA National Tournament appearances and was named to the SEC All-Academic Team in four consecutive seasons. McKinney would play her final season at UNC Charlotte where she was named as the C-USA Defensive Player of the Year after averaging just over six points and grabbed 8.06 rebounds per game. McKinney would go on to record six double-doubles with the 49ers while leading the conference with 71 blocks.
A member of the Conference USA All-Defensive Team, McKinney would pull down a team-best 258 rebounds while helping to lead the team to a C-USA Championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
McKinney, a native of Knoxville, Tenn., graduated from Kentucky with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work in May 2021. She would go on to earn a Certificate in Early Childhood Mental Health from Charlotte in May 2022.
Wright comes to Memphis after spending the past two seasons as a Graduate Assistant at Clemson University where she helped the program in many different areas that included preparing and executing scouting reports, advising student-athletes with academic support and helping Clemson women's basketball to their highest GPA in program history and coordinating aspects of team operations.
Along with her duties within the Clemson program, Wright played a major role in facilitating recruiting visits and managing information within their databases. Wright was part of a staff that acquired the Tigers best recruiting class to date, including 2022 McDonald's All-American Ruby Whitehorn.
Wright played for two seasons at Towson University where she was named as a team captain and served as a member of the Team Leadership Council. Wright also served on the executive boards for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, the Colonial Athletic Association United for Change and Athletes for Inclusion, Diversity and Equity.
Prior to Towson, Wright started her collegiate career at Mercer University where she helped the team to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances while serving on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
Wright graduated from Towson in 2021 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Gerontology. She will receive her Master of Science in Athletic Leadership from Clemson later this month.
How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Basketball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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