Vols could turn to Kent in frontcourt
KNOXVILLE — Like a few of his teammates, Zach Kent has had to wait for an opportunity to contribute for the Tennessee men’s basketball program.
That chance now appears inevitable.
With the Volunteers having ample experience in the frontcourt in recent seasons and his own injuries playing a part, the 6-foot-11, 235pound redshirt sophomore has yet to make an impact in games. He played in just two as a freshman in 201718, scoring four points and grabbing three rebounds in a grand total of 13 minutes of playing time.
But even as rumors floated around Knoxville about an inevitable transfer to another program, Kent remained.
“I want to know what I can get out of myself,” he told the Times Free Press recently. “I’ve got my teammates and my family behind me, pushing me forward, and that always make it a little bit easier, but I’m trying to be the best me and to see what I can do.” But was that hard? “Of course,” said Kent, who did not appear in any games last season after having knee surgery in early October 2018. “I’m a thinker, so I run circles in my own head over anything. It doesn’t matter. It could be the simplest thing, so I’ve definitely got in my own head and I’ve had to talk myself down a little bit, but that’s something that comes with it and you’ve got to find a way to bounce back.
“It was exhausting at times. We’d have a threehour practice and I’d get back to my room and you’re doing that (thinking) for a while, and it can make for a very exhausting day. It’s hard, but you’ve got to deal with it. It’s one of those things.”
Now, as the Vols prepare for their opener at 7 tonight against UNC Asheville at Thompson-Boling Arena, Kent will have an opportunity to play a big role in Rick Barnes’ fifth season as coach.
Grant Williams is gone to the Boston Celtics. Admiral Schofield has bounced between the Washington Wizards and their NBA G-league affiliate, The Capital City Go-Go. Also playing professionally is former Vols forward Kyle Alexander, who is with the Miami Heat’s G-League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Toss in forwards D.J. Burns (who transferred to Winthrop) and Derrick Walker (who transferred to Nebraska), and the Vols are without five frontcourt players who were in the rotation last season, including three — Burns, Walker and Williams — who still had college eligibility remaining. In addition, Tennessee found out Saturday that Arizona State transfer Uros Plavsic’s NCAA appeal for a waiver to make him immediately eligible was denied.
Kent can help. He’s probably more of a pick-and-pop player who can shoot from deep, but he spent most of the summer in Knoxville working on his interior game and becoming a more cerebral defender to overcome what he considers his athletic shortcomings.
Whatever it takes to contribute.
“I’ve just been working on elevating everything I do, the different skills I have,” he said. “Playing at a faster pace, playing more athletic and just putting the pieces together as well as I can before the season starts. It’s been a process through two years of change here that I’ve just been continuing to work on.
“There’s definitely some small times where I overthink and hesitate, but that more so happened when I was a lot younger. As I’ve gotten older I’ve been relying much more on instinct.”
The Vols will need that this season.
“I’ve just been working on elevating everything I do, the different skills I have. Playing at a faster pace, playing more athletic and just putting the pieces together as well as I can before the season starts. It’s been a process through two years of change here that I’ve just been continuing to work on” – ZACH KENT