Busting Brackets
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SEC Basketball: Way-too-early power rankings for 2021-22 season

By Matt Melton

NASHVILLE, TN - MARCH 12: Juwan Gary #4 and Jahvon Quinerly #13 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrate connecting on a alley oop dunk as head coach Ben Howland of the Mississippi State Bulldogs calls a timeout during the first half of their quarterfinal game in the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 12, 2021 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN - MARCH 12: Juwan Gary #4 and Jahvon Quinerly #13 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrate connecting on a alley oop dunk as head coach Ben Howland of the Mississippi State Bulldogs calls a timeout during the first half of their quarterfinal game in the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 12, 2021 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /
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SEC Basketball Victor Bailey Jr Tennessee Volunteers (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
SEC Basketball Victor Bailey Jr Tennessee Volunteers (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /

No. 5 – Tennessee Volunteers

After being picked to win the SEC last preseason, the Volunteers had a fairly disappointing season where they finished 4th in the SEC and suffered a disappointing loss in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament. Tennessee will lose some talent but will reload as well.

The Volunteers will lose multiple prominent players of this past season’s roster. The top two leading scorers Jaden Springer and Keon Johnson declared for the NBA Draft, while Tennessee will lose their starting front-court in seniors Yves Pons and John Fulkerson. Yes, losing four of your top five players is concerning, but Rick Barnes and the Vols will re-load next season.

Tennessee will return a few notable players from last season headlined by Victor Bailey Jr, Santiago Vescovi, and Josiah-Jordan James. Each of these three averaged 8+ PPG this past season, and will all surely feature in the starting lineup. Tennessee will also return forwards Olivier Nkamhoua and Uros Plavsic.

The Volunteers also bring in a recruiting class headlined by 5-star point guard and Top 15 national player Kennedy Chandler, who should feature as the focal point of the Vols offense. Tennessee also adds 4-star forward Jahmai Mashack, guard Quentin Diboundje Eyobo, and Auburn transfer guard Justin Powell who averaged 11-6-4 in 10 games for the Tigers last season.

Tennessee may take a step or two back in some areas, in particular a defense that ranked 5th in the country but should be back as one of the top teams in the SEC next season.

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