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Tennessee basketball recruiting: Missing out on five-star guard could benefit Vols

By Caleb Calhoun

ST LOUIS, MO - MARCH 10: Rick Barnes the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers gives instructions to his team against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the semifinals of the 2018 SEC Basketball Tournament at Scottrade Center on March 10, 2018 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
ST LOUIS, MO - MARCH 10: Rick Barnes the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers gives instructions to his team against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the semifinals of the 2018 SEC Basketball Tournament at Scottrade Center on March 10, 2018 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee basketball recruiting target Anfernee Simons announced his intention to enter the NBA Draft. Here’s why that could actually help the Volunteers.

Could it be a blessing in disguise? Maybe. On paper, though, it’s a huge loss in every way. Tennessee basketball is returning everybody from its regular season SEC title team except one guard. And they could have replaced that guard with a five-star scorer who could make an immediate impact.

These are the prospects Anfernee Simons brought to the table. And it seemed like the Vols had a great chance to land the 6’4″ shooting guard out of IMG Academy in Florida. However, Simons announced his intention to declare for the NBA Draft Thursday, which he is able to do.

For many reasons, that could be a good thing. Rick Barnes returns every single key piece to his team from this past year. Sure, James Daniel III is a big loss off the bench. But he still has Chris Darrington, another guard with experience who could develop.

And Lamonte Turner, Jordan Bone and Jordan Bowden are all back. These guys are the heart of the backcourt. They all shot near 40 percent from three this past year and were able to stretch the floor, allowing Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield to operate in their own way.

Honestly, there’s a chance Simons might not have fit into the system. What good is a combo guard who will be looking at one year of college as an audition for the NBA on this team? He could become a major issue.

If you don’t think this is possible, go back and look at Barnes’s final two years at Texas. The 2014-2015 Texas Longhorns, much like Tennessee basketball, returned everybody from the team the previous year, which went to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

On top of that, they added five-star Myles Turner. The addition was supposed to put them over the hump. And they started the season ranked No. 10 in the country.

Instead, the year became a disaster. Before December ended, questions were arising if Turner was upsetting Texas’s chemistry. That’s exactly what happened as this team stumbled to a 20-14 record and a first round exit from the NCAA Tournament.

That’s why Texas fired Barnes, and it’s why he took Tennessee job. As a result, losing out on Simons this time around may not be a big deal. Very recent history regarding a Barnes-led team tells us that.

Tennessee basketball is deep at the guard spot, and they can still add a player to that final role. Three-star Cordova guard Tyler Harris is likely out of the picture with Penny Hardaway now taking over the Memphis Tigers.

However, four-star James Akinjo is very much in play. And he’s more of a point guard who is in no position to think immediately about the NBA. As a result, that gives him two more reasons to be unselfish and fit better in with the chemistry.

If the Vols land him, it’s the perfect fit. If they don’t, though, well they still return a ton of talent. Were it not for an injury to Kyle Alexander, this team would’ve made the Elite Eight with ease. No reason to mess up the chemistry of an Elite Eight caliber team that returns everybody.

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