Splitting up was not an acceptable option for twins Haley and Hanna Cavinder, who said Tuesday they will instead begin a “new chapter” away from Miami Hurricanes basketball.
Haley Cavinder said she anticipated returning for the fifth season of eligibility athletes are afforded because of the COVID-19 pandemic. When she discovered her twin, Hanna, felt the opposite, there was only one answer.
“Hanna and I have decided to not take our fifth year,” a joint statement shared via Instagram said Tuesday. “What started as us playing basketball 16 years ago turned into something bigger than we could ever imagine.”
Haley led the Hurricanes in scoring with 12.2 points per game and started all 35 games. Hanna, who is also 5-foot-6, played 16.7 minutes per game — compared to just over 30 for Haley — and averaged 3.8 points per game.
The 22-year-old twins helped Miami reach the Elite Eight as a No. 9 seed in March, beating Villanova and Indiana before losing to national champion LSU.
Social media superstars, the Gilbert, Ariz., natives spent their first three seasons at Fresno State and transferred to Miami for the 2022-23 campaign.
The twins are in the top five of all NIL earners across sports. They will continue deals with Champs Sports, WWE and others while also announcing a new media partnership.
“Everybody always talks about, ‘Oh, you don’t want to go into the real world; you don’t want to go there yet,'” Hanna told ESPN on Tuesday. “I feel like we’ve been running our business for two years now. It’s been a full-time job. I think (not playing basketball or being in college) will actually allow us to have more time now to focus on business and growing relationships.”
–Field Level Media