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Tennessee basketball 2020-2021 preview: Backcourt

By Caleb Calhoun

Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi (25) and Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James (5) celebrate after defeating South Carolina 56-55 at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020.Kns Vols South Carolina
Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi (25) and Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James (5) celebrate after defeating South Carolina 56-55 at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020.Kns Vols South Carolina /
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Feb 29, 2020; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Santiago Vescovi (25) brings the ball up court against the Florida Gators during the first half at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 29, 2020; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Santiago Vescovi (25) brings the ball up court against the Florida Gators during the first half at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /

Biggest questions

1. Who starts at off-guard?

Whether it’s just the two or the two and the three, Tennessee basketball has a couple of openings at the off-guard spots thanks to the departure of Jordan Bowden. With two five-star freshmen in Keon Johnson and Jaden Springer, Rick Barnes has lots to work with here.

light. Related Story. Lady Vols 2020-2021 preview by position: Frontcourt

Springer and Josiah-Jordan James are likely to compete for the three spot as two combo guards. James could take a major leap forward this year now that he’s healthy. Johnson, however, also could have competition from Davonte Gaines and even Victor Bailey Jr., and don’t sleep on there only being room for one of these guys if Barnes decides to play big.

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2. Who emerges as a go-to scorer?

Regardless of whether or not Barnes uses two or three guys from his backcourt in the starting lineup, he’s going to need a new go-to scorer there. Bowden’s departure leaves a major void for the Vols on that front.

Johnson, again, would be the favorite, but Springer, James, Gaines and Bailey were all brought in for their ability to score. Santiago Vescovi, as the point guard, can’t be the most reliable scorer of this group for it to succeed.

3. Did Santiago Vescovi improve his turnover issue?

While Santiago Vescovi can’t be the go-to scorer, he proved to be an elite scorer last year, as we mentioned with the stats in our slide describing him. The one issue we left out, though, is turnovers. Vescovi averaged over three a game.

Related Story. Lady Vols 2020-2021 preview by position: Backcourt. light

To be fair to Vescovi, he was a midseason enrollee immediately thrust into the starting lineup. However, entering his sophomore year as the point guard of the future for Tennessee basketball, he’s got to cut down on those to truly let this offense go.

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