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Tennessee basketball one transfer forward away from being title contender in 2021-22

By Caleb Calhoun

Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James (5), Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi (25) and Tennessee guard Victor Bailey Jr (12) react to a dunk by Tennessee forward Drew Pember (3) during a basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., on Wednesday, February 17, 2021.Kns Vols Gamecocks Hoops Bp
Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James (5), Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi (25) and Tennessee guard Victor Bailey Jr (12) react to a dunk by Tennessee forward Drew Pember (3) during a basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the South Carolina Gamecocks at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., on Wednesday, February 17, 2021.Kns Vols Gamecocks Hoops Bp /
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Yves Pons is gone. Jaden Springer and Keon Johnson will likely follow suit. John Fulkerson could join them. On paper, there’s a lot to worry about related to Tennessee basketball, and that was the case before Davonte Gaines and Drew Pember entered the transfer portal.

A quick look at the Vols’ roster, though, and what they have coming in from the recruiting trail shows there’s no reason to not be excited about the future. Sure, the Vols lost in the first round this past year. They could rebound quickly.

All that’s needed for Tennessee basketball to return to contention for a national title next year is one graduate transfer big man. Rick Barnes needs to bring in an experienced offensive threat who can immediately step in and make an impact.

This past year, Fulkerson struggled with consistency, so he wasn’t the same offensive threat he was in 2019-2020. His absence in the NCAA Tournament was noticeable, and it didn’t allow UT to play its game.

Whether or not he returns, though, the Vols need to add such a player in the transfer portal. They need that guy to be an elite five as well. Grant Ramey of GoVols247 listed plenty of proven players in the portal, most notably Nate Reuvers from the Wisconsin Badgers and Tre Mitchell from the UMASS Minutemen. Both would fill the one void UT has next year.

The best big man the Vols could add from the portal, though, would be North Carolina Tar Heels transfer Walker Kessler from the North Carolina Tar Heels. Once a five-star center who stands at 7’1″ 245 pounds, Kessler only averaged four and a half points and just under three and a half rebounds this past year.

However, Kessler was a freshmen, and he committed as a stretch five while trying to adjust to playing under the basket. A year playing for Roy Williams likely helped him develop there, and Barnes would be able to coach him up as a true five as well. Given Barnes’ connections to North Carolina and UT’s connections to Georgia, where he’s from, they could land him.

If one of those three big men ends up on Rocky Top, the Vols will immediately have a complete team, and they will be loaded with depth and experience as well. There’s nowhere else they need to focus their offseason efforts, assuming all these guys could play immediately due to the NCAA’s COVID eligibility exception from this past year.

Despite the losses, Tennessee basketball doesn’t need help at guard. UT returns two elite shooters in the backcourt in Santiago Vescovi and Victor Bailey Jr. Given the way players develop in Barnes’ system, both guys could become stars next year.

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Beyond those two, though, Josiah-Jordan James seems like he’s coming back. In his postgame press conference after the Vols’ loss to the Oregon State Beavers, James talked about the steps UT needs to take to improve in the offseason. Remember, he was once a five-star, and he’s glue combo guard for the team. Him coming back for his junior year is a huge deal.

Those three guys could be the foundation for this team, but then there is five-star point guard Kennedy Chandler committed. Chandler is one of those five-star guys likely to be an immediate impact player, and he will help offset the losses of Springer and Johnson.

Four elite guards like that is enough for a solid rotation. Barnes also has wing/four hybrids in Olivier Nkamhoua, who could fill the void Pons is leaving, and Corey Walker Jr., who was a four-star in the Vols’ 2020 recruiting class but redshirted this past year.

Add in the return of E.J. Anosike and Uros Plavsic along with the addition of four-star forward Jahmai Mashack, and there is plenty of depth in the post to be going along with. All Tennessee basketball needs is one elite scoring big man.

If somebody 6’9″ or above, preferably 6’11” at least, joins the Vols, they’ll have a complete team. The lack of offensive consistency from the guards last year stemmed from an inability to play the inside-put game Barnes wants.

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Adding any elite forward will complete Tennessee basketball and offset any issues they had this past year. With the main scoring guards being more familiar with Barnes’ system as well, the shot selection and decision-making is likely to also be much better. Simply put, 2021-22 is bright for the Vols if they can guarantee they will have one elite offensive big man.

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