‘I wanted to come home.’ Brooklynn Miles discusses return to the Bluegrass to play for UK.

Not even an hour removed from her official visit, Brooklynn Miles announced via social media on May 22 that, from now on, she’d be sporting Kentucky Blue.

The 5-foot-4 guard, who made a name for herself in Central Kentucky with a historic career at Franklin County High School before graduating as the 2021 Miss Kentucky Basketball and 2021 Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year, entered the transfer portal at the start of April upon the conclusion of her sophomore season with Tennessee.

“I really just thought about what would be best for myself,” Miles said. “’What would be best for me? What do I need to be successful?’ And it was just a change. So I started thinking about it, then made the decision. When I went into the portal, coaches started reaching out. Then Kentucky reached out and I knew. I knew I wanted to come home.”

UK wasn’t only the right fit for Miles at this point in her career, but head coach Kyra Elzy felt Miles was right for the Wildcats, too.

“The coaching staff and I couldn’t be more excited to welcome Brooklynn back home,” Elzy said in the news release. “She is a proud hometown girl, who understands the responsibility of wearing Kentucky across her chest.”

If UK’s 2022-23 season was any indication, the rebuilding process after Rhyne Howard’s departure is far from over. Furthermore, the Wildcats found themselves down even more than expected by the time May rolled around, particularly in the backcourt. In addition to losing starting guards Robyn Benton and Blair Green to graduation, underclassman game changers Jada Walker and Kennedy Cambridge sought new beginnings in the transfer portal.

While Miles’ fellow Miss Kentucky Basketball honorees, Maddie Scherr (2020) and Amiya Jenkins (2022), as well as senior Eniya Russell, are likely to carry much of the load in 2023-24, UK’s dipping into the portal to find additional depth at the guard position was far from a surprise.

As a result of the current Memorial Coliseum reconstruction, the Wildcats are expected to play a number of their 2023-24 home games in Rupp Arena. So why not bring in a player with Rupp Arena experience?

Miles played on the Franklin County varsity squad in middle school, gaining valuable experience as the Flyers won back-to-back 11th Region titles and reached two consecutive KHSAA state championship games. Though Miles didn’t lead either of those teams in scoring, she played a necessary role on the road to BB&T Arena.

Though she was young, others started to take notice of her talent and potential, as she remembered receiving her first college interest letter around that time. But, after eighth grade, Miles made the decision to quit.

“It was just for that one year and it was really, for my mental and just for myself,” Miles explained. “It was just ... basketball was like my whole life. I wanted to find myself outside of basketball. So I just took that year, but then I realized ‘dang, I love basketball too much. I’m not gonna actually step away.’”

For Miles, whose life has included basketball since she was 3 years old, the time away allowed for reflection and reframing. Ultimately, it reminded her of the passion she has for the game and what it allows her to express.

“I think it just brings out a different side of me because I feel like I’m always sweet,” Miles laughed. “I’m just sweet and quiet ... sometimes quiet, it depends, you gotta get to know me first. But on the court, I can just be whoever I want to be. You know, it just brings out a different side of me and it’s a clear space for me. If I’m going through something, I can go to the gym.”

Miles went on to lead the Flyers to two additional 11th Region titles and two KHSAA Sweet 16 appearances at Rupp Arena, and graduated as Franklin County’s second all-time leading scorer with 2,278 points. She also finished as the program’s all-time assist leader with 624. Miles was ranked as the No. 20 point guard in the class of 2021 and considered a three-star recruit by espnW.

In July 2020, during another summer with EYBL team Kentucky Premier, Miles announced her commitment to play for the Lady Vols. She chose Tennessee over finalists UK, Miami (Fla.), North Carolina State and Purdue.

“Honestly, I wanted to go to a bigger school,” Miles said. “I knew I wanted to be on that platform, on that level. And that’s all I worked for, was that. Was to get to that level. This level.”

Tennessee won the recruiting battle for a handful of reasons, including its far enough, but not-too-far distance from home. Miles’ AAU teammate and friend Kaiya Wynn had also committed to play in Knoxville, and Miles already knew some of the players there. And, despite a strange, COVID protocol-altered official visit, Miles said she fell in love with it as soon as she got there.

“It was just the right place, right time,” Miles said.

In her two seasons at Tennessee, Miles averaged 1.8 points on 40 percent shooting and 2.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game over the course of 56 games. During this time, the Lady Vols reached back-to-back Sweet 16s in the NCAA Tournament.

This summer, Miles’ personal on-court goals pertain to fine-tuning and getting back to the self-assured player she once was.

“I want to get better at my footwork and be more consistent on my shots and things like that,” Miles said. “And shooting the ball more because my confidence has to build back up.”

While Miles is committed to helping UK reach a high level of success, when she took her official visit to UK in May, it was the off-court attitude that made all the difference.

“It just felt like family off the bat,” Miles said. “The coaches are so welcoming; it’s like they actually try to form a connection with you, and it’s just great. Outside of basketball, they care about your life. They care about you off the court. They don’t just care about what you can do in a uniform, you know, they care about what type of woman you are, and that’s just everything to me.”

UK is also nearby her parents, Rachel Holt and Gordon Miles, and her younger sister and brother.

Even before Miles knew UK was where she wanted to transfer, it didn’t hurt that former AAU teammates, high school opponents and, most of all, friends, Scherr and Jenkins were there to answer questions about their college experiences. Miles said she was supposed to take a visit to Oregon, Scherr’s former team, and spoke with the senior about the program, as well as discussed UK with her and Jenkins.

The three combine to make history on the roster, which now features an all-time high of three former Miss Kentucky Basketball honorees.

“It does register with me (that they’re all in one place) because me, Maddie and Mimi have all been friends before this,” Miles said. “Been teammates before this. So it’s just been great to share that experience with two other people on my team.”

(If you want to get technical, the program now officially features four Miss Kentucky Basketball winners with the recent hire of assistant coach Crystal Kelly, who earned the honor in 2004.)

According to Miles, the bonding has extended far beyond the honorees.

“We got a team group chat we goof around in all the time,” Miles said of the team’s connection. “Locker room, we goof around all the time. Then, you know, really we’re just trying to get to know each other better and get to learn to play with each other better.”

Since the new arrivals — Miles, as well as incoming freshmen Jordy Griggs and Janaé Walker — came to campus in early June, the team has moved headfirst into goal-setting and strength and conditioning training. Miles said she’s most excited about the team’s drive and motivation.

“Just how determined we are,” Miles said. “How focused we are. And how we care about each other, and we’re working for one another. We’re not just doing it for ourselves, we’re doing it for each other. And that just is great. Because you know, you always need an extra motivator sometimes.”

The Wildcats begin their 2023-24 season with a free admission home exhibition against Division II Kentucky State on Nov. 1.

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