Rick Barnes and Tennessee basketball keep winning on the hardwood and on the recruiting trail. The Vols had a few players enter the transfer portal, and Barnes has responded by signing bigger, stronger, and more efficient players.
North Florida transfer guard Chaz Lanier is the most recent player to join the Vols through the transfer portal. He averaged 19.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists last year while earning First Team All-ASUN.
Lanier played at Ensworth High School in Nashville before heading to North Florida for the first four seasons of his college basketball career. He's returning home to the Volunteer State and made it official on his Twitter/X account on Friday afternoon.
Home is where the heart is!! 🧡🙏🏽
— CHAZ LANIER (@Swaggychaz) May 24, 2024
The Vols were competing with Kentucky to earn Lanier's commitment. It was neck and neck between the Vols and Cats for most of the recruiting process. Tennessee held a slight advantage over Kentucky after Pope's pitch to Lanier but it was essentially a coin flip to determine who had the advantage.
Kentucky's first-year head coach, Mark Pope, spent a week pitching the Wildcats program at the NBA Draft Combine with Lanier and his family. Lanier opted to make an official visit to Rocky Top and commit to the Vols.
Tennessee gave him the "Dalton Knecht" pitch with the opportunity to play one season in front of the best fans, in one of the best programs, for one of the best coaches in the nation, with an opportunity to be an NBA Lottery pick in 2025. Tennessee wasn't shy about celebrating the big commitment either.
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) May 24, 2024
The Vols are excited to bring the most efficient scorer in college basketball to Rocky Top. Synergy basketball ranks Lanier as the most efficient scorer last season with 16.3 possessions per game, 19.5 points per game, and 1.20 points per possession. If he can bring that to Knoxville next season, the Vols will be lethal on offense.
According to Synergy, Lanier will join the fourth-most efficient scorer, Darlinstone Dubar, who transferred from Hofstra. The Vols were also able to sign stretch forward Igor Milicic Jr. from Charlotte and a big, physical threat in the paint in Felix Okpara from Ohio State.
Barnes isn't letting rumors swirl about his retirement get in the way of his recruiting. He's going for the best, most efficient players he can get who fit his system for the 2024-25 season. Tennessee still has two scholarships available, and it could look to fill those spots or leave them going into the summer.