Tennessee basketball: Ranking all nine returning players for 2022-23

Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James (30) and Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi (25) smile after James made a three-pointer during a basketball game between Tennessee and Texas A&M held at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., on Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022.Kns Vols Texas A M Hoops Bp
Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James (30) and Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi (25) smile after James made a three-pointer during a basketball game between Tennessee and Texas A&M held at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., on Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022.Kns Vols Texas A M Hoops Bp
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Tennessee guard Kent Gilbert (21) dribbles the ball during a game between Tennessee and Lenoir-Rhyne at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021.Kns Vols Hoops Exhibition
Tennessee guard Kent Gilbert (21) dribbles the ball during a game between Tennessee and Lenoir-Rhyne at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021.Kns Vols Hoops Exhibition

6’1″ 175 pounds

Another walk-on, Kent Gilbert actually joined Tennessee basketball the same year Isaiah Sulack did, 2020-2021. However, he did it as a freshman out of high school, and he’s been seeing more action ever since that first year. As a result, he deserves to be higher on that list than Sulack.

Gilbert played for three minutes in 2020-2021, all against the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles. This past year, he saw action in four games. Like Sulack, he went into the game against ETSU, Presbyterian and UNC Greensboro. However, he also went into the game against the USC Upstate Spartans, and that was before Sulack’s injury, so he’s legitimately seen more action.

In terms of production, Gilbert attempted his first two shots last year, one against Presbyterian and the other against USC Upsate. Both attempts were three-point shots, and he made the one against USC Upstate, so he is a walk-on who has actually scored a bucket playing for the Vols.

That doesn’t seem like much, but Gilbert’s experience at point guard could be useful here, as Tennessee basketball actually only has one true point guard on the roster and then a bunch of combo guards. Taking that into account, don’t be surprised if he ends up seeing a lot more action this year simply due to personnel.