Radvile Autukaite had a Unique Journey to Kentucky

Radvile Autukaite grew up in Lithuania but always dreamed of coming to the United States and at age 18  came to the U.S. to play basketball at Reinhardt University, a NAIA school, to play basketball.

That was 15 years ago and today she’s the recruiting coordinator and assistant coach for the Kentucky women’s basketball program. She joined Kenny Brooks’ staff at Virginia Tech in 2017 and has been with him ever since.

She has been a bit overwhelmed by what it has been like at Kentucky since arriving with Brooks.

“Being here has been so much fun and the amount of coverage for our program has been amazing,” she said. “It has been great for us and women’s basketball. I am very grateful to be here.”

Prior to moving to the United States, Autukaite played for the Lithuanian National Team. At Reinhardt she was named the NAIA AAC Female Champion of Character Award for all sports.

She did not have an easy journey to where she is now. After her playing career ended, she worked two years as a graduate assistant at Webber International University and earned a Master of Business Administration. However, something happened with her paperwork and it looked like she was going to have to return to Lithuania.

“An attorney told me the only way I could stay (in the United States) was to go back to school or get married. I told the attorney getting married was not an option and going back to school was a problem because I already had my MBA,” the Kentucky assistant said. “I started searching for what schools might have a job open. Usually a GA (graduate assistant) at a Power 5 school goes to a former player. I had a friend and mentor who had a connection at Virginia Tech.”

She never spoke to Brooks directly before getting to Virginia Tech but eventually moved up to player personnel specialist and then assistant coach for two years before coming to Kentucky with Brooks.

“Normally as a grad assistant you go to a lower level and maybe get to come back to a Power 5 program. I had a great relationship with coach Brooks and he just kept me around and when he had a position open, he promoted me.” Autukaite said. “I just got lucky. Do not look at my story and think it is normal because it is not and I know it. It has definitely been crazy at times with some adversity but I am so appreciative of being where I am today.”

Kentucky went 11-1 in non-conference play with a win over Louisville and then had an impressive SEC debut with a 91-69 win over Mississippi State in Memorial Coliseum. Brooks and his staff had to quickly assemble a roster that included only two players off the previous UK roster.

“I thought what we did at Virginia Tech (including a Final Four berth) was incredible. We do not expect things to happen overnight,” she said. “Coach Brooks knows how to make a team great. We want to have a product fans in this state will enjoy and be proud of.

“Coach Brooks has been doing this a long time. His style is unique. We do not change who we are. Our roster is a little different with the height we have.”

The roster is also a lot different from most with five international players — Georgia Amoore, Amelia Hassett, Dominika Paurova, Clara Silva and Tanah Becker.

“This was not planned. It just kind of happened,” Autukaite said. “We just recruit the best players for us. All of us come from different backgrounds and that part of the beauty of this team. They all bring different thoughts and experiences they can exchange with each other. They can go have dinner and talk about what the food is like in Portugal or Australia. It brings a unique diversity to us.”

She jokes that Brooks put her in charge of “international recruiting” because of her European background.

“You don’t play for high school teams (in Europe). You play for club teams. There are very limited programs within the schools,” she said. “I take pride in my connections. I go every summer to recruit internationally. I was in Europe most of August. It’s not that we want somebody international in every class. We just want the best players in the world playing for us.”