The final chapter of Rick Barnes’ coaching career has been quite the story over this last decade at Tennessee and these last few seasons have been the best parts. The Volunteers have made seven straight trips to the Big Dance and finished Top 4 in the SEC each time, but most notably are fresh off their second consecutive Elite Eight appearance. After coming painfully close to the Final Four, it’s a very different looking team that’ll be trying again this season.
The top four scorers from last season all exhausted their eligibility and none will be missed more than dynamic point guard Zakai Zeigler. He was the backbone on both sides of the ball for the Volunteers, setting up great performances from fellow outgoing stars Jordan Gainey, Chaz Lanier, and Igor Milicic. Felix Okpara returns at center in his senior season while a few rising juniors return in that frontcourt as well in Cade Phillips and J. P. Estrella but there are many changes especially in the backcourt.
Pairing nicely with the experience in the frontcourt, Tennessee landed one of the nation’s top recruits in power forward Nate Ament, while a few other intriguing freshmen and transfers enter the fold. Jaylen Carey slides over from Vanderbilt and provides depth inside the paint while Amaree Abram comes from Louisiana Tech and likely secures one of those vacant starting jobs in the backcourt.
The other spot certainly goes to Ja’Kobi Gillespie, whose addition became an immensely important part of Tennessee’s offseason. A 6-1 point guard from Greeneville, Tennessee, Gillespie is back in his home state after a pair of standout seasons at Belmont followed up by last year’s prominence with Maryland. As a starting guard with the Terrapins, Gillespie transitioned beautifully into the Big Ten by averaging 14.7 points and 4.8 assists per game, helping take Maryland to the Sweet Sixteen.
Regardless of anything else, Gillespie serves an immense purpose in replace Zeigler on this roster. Nobody expects him to have the exact same impact, but Gillespie is a lights-out scorer who made just under 41% of his 3-pointers last season. He produces points in various ways both as a shooter and distributor and his very presence elevates what looks like a pretty talented Tennessee roster as a whole.
A potential starting five of Gillespie, Abram, Carey, Ament, and Okpara can do significant damage in a talent-filled SEC. While the Volunteers are asking a lot from new faces all over this roster, especially from a freshman in Ament, Gillespie’s role is quite clear. Tennessee has always been a defensive juggernaut and their going to get great run from Gillespie on both sides of the court. If his game takes even another step forward, Tennessee will certainly have their leader that can get this team to yet another deep postseason run.