Tennessee basketball: Yves Pons returning for senior season

The forward is withdrawing from the NBA Draft and returning to the Tennessee basketball Volunteers.

It looks like Tennessee basketball will have its best defender back. Over three months after he declared for the NBA Draft, forward Yves Pons announced he was backing out and would return for his senior season with the Vols.

Sean Farnham of ESPN initially tweeted out reports of Pons returning but then tweeted out another report of Pons having second thoughts. However, he noted an hour later that the second thoughts were over and Pons was returning.

By that point, multiple reports came out that Pons would be back on Tennessee basketball for the 2020-2021 season, getting Vol fans excited everywhere. Pons finally confirmed the news himself on Twitter as well.

With Pons’ return, the Vols are loaded with talent heading into the season. Last year, Pons started at the four for Rick Barnes, and as a 6’6″ 215 pound athletic junior, he dramatically improved his skills, averaging nearly 11 points, five and a half rebounds and over two blocks a game en route to earning SEC Defensive Player of the Year.

A major part of Pons’ improvement was his three-point shooting, as he shot 34.9 percent from beyond the arc in his junior. Initially a four-star forward out of France, he has been an amazing development story playing under Barnes.

This year, his return combined with the Vols’ top five recruiting class gives Barnes tons of options to work with when it comes to the 2020-2021 rotation, even with the loss of Jordan Bowden. Barnes could put Pons back at the four with John Fulkerson at center.

However, Barnes could also move Pons to the three, similar to what he did with Admiral Schofield in 2018-2019, thanks to the addition of Sacred Heart Pioneers transfer power forward E.J. Anosike, who averaged a double-double last year and stands at 6’6″ 245 pounds. Anosike could then play the four while Fulkerson still plays the five.

When it comes to the backcourt, this lessens the pressure on them, and that’s where the elite recruiting class is. At point guard, Tennessee basketball still has Santiago Vescovi, but Oregon Ducks transfer Victor Bailey Jr. will also be eligible and in that rotation this year.

Five-stars Keon Johnson and Jaden Springer are the two highly-touted shooting guards added to the class, and four-star Corey Walker Jr. is another wing player. Add in Davonte Gaines, Olivier Nkamhoua, Drew Pember and Uros Plavsic, and it’s safe to say the Vols are loaded with talent. Pons coming back just gives them a lot more potential.