The next step for Tennessee basketball after Rick Barnes and the Vols missed on a top target for the program’s final roster spot
Rick Barnes and the Tennessee Volunteers have a final roster spot to fill. The expectation is that Tennessee will find a way to land another big man to serve as a rim protector.
Rick Barnes and the Tennessee Vols have had a very fruitful offseason, but there’s still work to be done.
The Vols have landed seven transfer additions, including Wake Forest Demon Deacons transfer guard Juke Harris.
Tennessee, though, still has a roster spot to fill. The feeling is that Barnes would like to add another big man to fill that final spot.
The Vols recently hosted 7-foot-1 four-star center Favour Ibe on a visit. Ibe would’ve been a good fit for Tennessee, but he committed to Virginia this past weekend.
What’s next for the Tennessee Vols and their final roster spot?
VolQuest’s Austin Price joined 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will and detailed what’s next for the Volunteers after missing on Ibe.
“Tennessee is going to continue to recruit probably a few lesser names,” said Price on Tuesday. “We’ll see who they can get to campus over the next few days. I think Tennessee’s been talking to a couple of guys. But no visits have been officially set up to this point.”
It sounds like the Vols will likely add a big man who can mostly serve as a depth option.
Given the amount of scoring that Tennessee has added via the portal, I think it’s safe to assume that Barnes will be looking for a defense-first type of big man.
Seattle transfer Austin Maurer, 7-foot/235 pounds from Medford, OR, was ranked by 247Sports as the top available center in the portal, but he signed with Stanford on Monday, so quality options are dwindling.