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Tennessee basketball: Projecting Vols’ 2022-23 starting lineup

By Caleb Calhoun

Jan 11, 2022; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes speaks with guard Josiah-Jordan James (30) during the first half against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 11, 2022; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes speaks with guard Josiah-Jordan James (30) during the first half against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports /
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A key injury last year forces Rick Barnes to play small to great success, and it may have altered what Tennessee basketball will look like in the future. Both players who were involved in that are back as well as other crucial returning talent, and Barnes has added to that with another elite recruiting class and an elite transfer.

How will this impact their depth chart? Well, we don’t know yet. Barnes still values defense, the midrange and a solid inside presence, and honestly, there are plenty of examples of it serving him well over the years. However, he could switch things up given his personnel.

As we get set to break down the depth chart for UT this year, we’ll take a look at the backups at each position along with the starters while also naming other possible backups and who could play multiple roles. There are 12 scholarship players who could make a push. Here is our projection for Tennessee basketball’s 2022-23 starting lineup.

Mar 11, 2022; Tampa, FL, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) looks to pass the ball in the second half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Amelie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 11, 2022; Tampa, FL, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) looks to pass the ball in the second half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Amelie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports /

Point guard – Zakai Zeigler

This one’s obviously no surprise. Zakai Zeigler spent half the time as the Vols’ point guard last year even though Kennedy Chandler was the five-star freshman phenom. Rick Barnes saw enough value in Zeigler to start him alongside Chandler, moving Chandler over to the two, so with Chandler now gone, Zeigler is the only true point guard on scholarship.

Last year, Zeigler averaged just under nine points a game, over two and a half assists and over one and a half steals. He had as manny steals as turnovers, a solid stat line for a true freshman point guard who was a three-star and only stood at 5’9″. There’s more potential for him this year with the role to himself.

Backup: B.J. Edwards

One of the four-stars in Tennessee basketball’s 2022 recruiting class, B.J. Edwards is a combo guard standing at 6’3″. There’s no clear-cut true point guard outside of Zeigler, but Edwards seems like the best chance to back him up as a combo guard. Kent Gilbert is a walk-on who has played a bit the past two years, so watch out for him, but Edwards will be the main guy.

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