All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee basketball: Ranking all 15 offseason roster changes by impact in 2021

By Caleb Calhoun

Jan 23, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes speaks with Tennessee Volunteers guard Yves Pons (35) and forward John Fulkerson (10) during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 23, 2021; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes speaks with Tennessee Volunteers guard Yves Pons (35) and forward John Fulkerson (10) during the second half against the Missouri Tigers at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 15
Next
E.J. Anosike (55) after scoring against St. Joseph’s during an NCAA men’s basketball game in Knoxville, Tenn. on Monday, December 21, 2020.Kns Vols Stjosephs
E.J. Anosike (55) after scoring against St. Joseph’s during an NCAA men’s basketball game in Knoxville, Tenn. on Monday, December 21, 2020.Kns Vols Stjosephs /

11. E.J. Anosike enters transfer portal

Not far above Drew Pember in terms of the impact of transfer forwards is E.J. Anosike. The brother of two-time Lady Vol national champion Nicky Anosike was more of a finished product when he joined Tennessee basketball, as he was a graduate transfer from the Sacred Heart Pioneers who had averaged a double-double the previous season.

At 6’7″ 245 pounds, his profile was expected to be that of Grant Williams. However, Rick Barnes seemed to imply that he’d need to take advantage of the COVID eligibility ruling and spend a year developing in his system to fully reach that potential.

That seemed perfectly reasonable given the talent on the team this past year, and Anosike averaged just under two points and two rebounds in over eight and a half minutes, appearing in 22 of 27 games. It seemed like with another year, Anosike would be ready to dominate the post.

Well, Anosike entered the transfer portal on April 10, and he recently joined the Cal State Fullerton Titans. His loss is the biggest of true post players because there is nobody with the size or profile of him. However, like Drew Pember, there wasn’t enough production to make his loss a huge impact, and UT still has Olivier Nkamhoua and Uros Plavsic coming back.

Home/Vols Basketball