Why Zakai Zeigler may have been a more important recruit for the Tennessee Vols than Kennedy Chandler
There was a lot of excitement last summer when five-star guard Kennedy Chandler officially signed with the Tennessee Vols. So far, Chandler has been as advertised. The Memphis native leads the Vols in scoring at 13.8 points per game. Chandler also leads the team in assists and steals. Not much more you could ask for […]
There was a lot of excitement last summer when five-star guard Kennedy Chandler officially signed with the Tennessee Vols.
So far, Chandler has been as advertised. The Memphis native leads the Vols in scoring at 13.8 points per game. Chandler also leads the team in assists and steals.
Not much more you could ask for if you're a Tennessee fan.
While there was a lot of fanfare surrounding Chandler's decision to sign with the Vols, there wasn't much of a reaction from fans when guard Zakai Zeigler signed with Tennessee last summer.
That's because Zeigler was an unheralded three-star recruit from New York who only had offers from two other Power-5 programs (Boston College and Minnesota).
Zeigler, however, has proved to be a revelation for the Vols. He brings a lot of energy and passion to the court and has been a key contributor. Zeigler is averaging 8.8 points per game, 2.6 assists per game, and 1.8 steals per game. He's also the best free-throw shooter on the team at 83.9%.
Those are pretty good numbers for a player who was expected to redshirt this season.
But while Zeigler has been impressive, he hasn't been quite as good as Chandler.
However, could Zeigler be the more important player for the Vols?
It sounds crazy at first. But CBS Sports college basketball insider Jon Rothstein thinks it's a worthy debate.
Rothstein appeared on 104.5 The Zone's JMart and Ramon on Wednseday and brought up the Chandler/Zeigler question.
"So much hype, and for good reason, was based upon Kennedy Chandler entering the season for Tennessee," said Rothstein. "But guys, how big has Zakai Zeigler been?"
"I know that Kennedy Chandler is going to go to the NBA, he’s going to pursue a professional career, but in Zakai Zeigler, you have a guy that’s going to be the face of this program. You have a guy, it’s going to be a scenario where he’s going to be an identifiable piece with Tennessee…In college today, where we see so much turnover and the sport has changed so much change….who is the better recruit? Is it Zakai Zeigler or is it Kennedy Chandler?"
The better player is Chandler — he's one of the most talented players that Tennessee has ever signed.
But I think Rothstein is on to something when he suggests that Zeigler could be the more important recruit. Zeigler is going to be at Tennessee for four years. He's going to be the heart and soul of this team for the next several seasons. His presence for four years is going to be more important to the program than one year of Chandler.
Ultimately, it's just a great position for the Vols to be in right now. Debating whether or not a potential lottery pick or a three-star recruit was the better addition is a debate I'm sure a lot of college basketball programs would love to be having right now.
Featured image via Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
