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COLUMBIA, Mo. — When Kellie Harper was a player at Tennessee, she wore No. 14 on her jersey. But Monday, inside the Mizzou Arena practice gym, she posed for photos with a differently numbered jersey.

Stitched onto the back was the No. 5, a ceremonial nod to Harper being named the fifth coach in Missouri women’s basketball history and, less intentionally, the start of her fifth head coaching gig.

Harper has been on the job since her hire nearly two weeks ago, but Monday’s formal introduction brought some pomp and circumstance to the beginning stages of Mizzou’s women’s basketball rebuild.

UM System President Mun Choi, opening the event with prepared remarks, gestured around the practice gym, where banners from NCAA Tournament appearances and conference titles hang high above the hardwood.

“Doesn’t a banner here sound really good?� Choi said as fans applauded. “That’s not a wish — it’s an expectation.�

Still, speaking into a microphone, he turned to face Harper, seated next to him.

“Please know that we have very high expectations,� Choi said.

MU hired Harper, 47, one year after her tenure coaching the Lady Vols ended — and just a couple of weeks after Robin Pingeton’s 15 years coaching at Missouri wrapped up with another poor season.

Missouri is investing more in women’s basketball to start the Harper era — the terms of her contract, which almost doubled her salary compared with what Pingeton was making, reflect that. There’s a hope that’s really more of an expectation that increased spending can make the Tigers into a competitive and relevant team.

From that investment to Harper’s player development emphasis to her decision to return to coaching, here are three takeaways from Mizzou’s formal introduction:

Mizzou invests to be competitive

MU athletics director Laird Veatch began his first coaching search of note with a promise: that his department wanted to spend enough to escape its rut of losing women’s basketball.

A willingness to spend netted the Tigers one of the more proven coaches considered available during this hiring cycle: Harper, with a career 393-260 record and four NCAA Tournament appearances at Tennessee.

“It was really the right time for us to make a very strategic but responsible investment in this program,� Veatch said Monday. “In the end, however, we were just very fortunate to have a candidate of this caliber not only available but (be) someone who really wants this job.�

He said he was pleasantly surprised by how much interest the ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ opening garnered — helped, no doubt, by the chance to coach in the Southeastern Conference. MU’s pitch to Harper wasn’t just a return to the conference or a salary that runs upwards of $1 million per season. It was also about preparedness for the green-tinged arms race that is roster building.

Veatch brought Brad Larrondo, the CEO of Mizzou’s Every True Tiger Brands NIL marketing agency, on a visit to Harper. They talked about different types of support that the athletics department can provide to a coach who’s already in the midst of her first transfer portal cycle on the job.

MU pledged an amount of money for roster building that will likely come in around the middle of the SEC when it comes to spending on players.

“We are not going to outspend everybody, but we’re also not going to be at the lower end either,� Veatch said. “We are going to be competitive, and we’re going to provide her what she needs.�

That was evidently what Harper was hoping to hear.

“Fortunately or unfortunately, it’s a big part because that’s where we’re at in athletics,� she said. “I had to feel and know that the support was going to be there for women’s basketball — support not just in being here and showing up, but the support financially. Give us an opportunity to be competitive.�

Why Harper returned to coaching

Harper spent the past year away from coaching after she was fired at Tennessee despite four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. She worked as an analyst for the SEC Network, watching a lot of the league she’d been coaching in.

Sitting away from the sideline meant more family time and less stress, but Harper found herself wanting back in the game.

The year away “reminded me what I do love about coaching, and one of the things that I’ve missed more than anything — well, two things: the interactions with the players and the interactions with my staff,� she said. “I love people. I love fighting for something. I love teaching someone how to do something and seeing them go and do it. I love challenging a group and watching them figure it out. I love the puzzle that we have to figure out as a staff. I love that. I missed it.�

Player development a focus

Mizzou’s search was led by deputy athletics director and chief operating officer Marcy Girton, and as part of the effort, MU administration consulted Sophie Cunningham. The former Missouri star now with the WNBA’s Indiana Fever was part of Harper’s interview for the position and backed her hire.

During that search, Harper’s SEC experience and tournament track record stood out. But so did another accomplishment: At Tennessee, she produced four straight first-round WNBA draft picks.

Rennia Davis went ninth overall in 2021, Rae Burrell went ninth in 2022, Jordan Horston went ninth overall in 2023 and Rickea Jackson went fourth overall in the star-studded 2024 class.

Mizzou, meanwhile, has never produced a first-round pick. When the Phoenix Mercury selected Cunningham with the first pick of the second round in 2019, she became the highest selection in MU history.

Could that change under Harper? It would take success in recruiting players with pro potential from the portal and high school ranks, but she seems committed to chasing that too. Harper will meet individually with every Missouri player to craft developmental plans, she said, and she’s already hired three assistant coaches to begin that work.

Jennifer Sullivan left her job as Florida Atlantic’s head coach to join Harper’s staff. MU has also hired Missouri State assistant Kenzie Kostas and Illinois assistant Liza Fruendt. All three have played for or coached with Harper previously, so they’re known quantities.

And among the coaches’ collective strengths?

“My staff is incredible at player development,� Harper said.