Tennessee basketball: Projecting the Vols 2019-2020 two-deep depth chart

Small forward

1. Josiah-Jordan James

Freshman; 6’6″ 208 pounds; Charleston, S.C.

And here we go with the first quirk in the system. Tennessee basketball is a bit too unproven this year, but their two leading scorers are guards, and Josiah-Jordan James is a five-star combo guard in this recruiting class. So that makes three elite guards, two of whom are combo guards, with too much of an unproven frontcourt. As a result, Rick Barnes will go small, and James will start.

While Lamonte Turner’s experience makes him the combo guard to run the point, James will be the guy to back him up when he goes to the bench. He already has great size at 6’6″, and his combo guard abilities make him the perfect candidate to play point forward in Barnes’s system as he tries to go small this year. James may not be a breakout player, but he’ll be a major contributor.

2. Olivier Nkamhoua

Freshman; 6’8″ 224 pounds; Helsinki, Finland

Just as we have James being in the No. 2 spot somewhere else, the true No. 2 small forward is starting elsewhere. We’ll get to him in a minute, but he’ll move over here when James is on the bench or moves to point guard. That happening, though, gives Olivier Nkamhoua a chance to get in the game in some way.

A three-star freshman, he was a late signee for Barnes after playing high school ball in Western Maryland. But Barnes has been touting his play throughout the offseason, so there’s reason to believe he will be in the rotation. Again, this young team will have to run a few freshmen, and Nkamhoua is definitely a guy who could make that happen.