Once overlooked, now top-rated
Without a top-100 recruit on its roster, Tennessee controls the polls
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The top-ranked Tennessee Volunteers are winning without any top-100 recruits on their roster. They are national contenders, winners of 18 in a row — the longest active streak in Division I and the program’s best ever — after a 73-61 victory Saturday against Florida.
“There’s some programs around the country that could never get by with recruiting the class that we brought in that’s having the success we’re having right now, because their media and their fan base would be screaming that we’re not recruiting the best players in the country,” coach Rick Barnes said.
Those players have Tennessee atop the rankings.
Barnes arrived in 2015, the third coach in as many seasons. The Volunteers went 3135 in his first two years before winning a share of the Southeastern Conference title a year ago. Now they’re in the hunt for the first Final Four berth in school history.
Per 247Sports, Tennessee’s top prospect is redshirt freshman D.J. Burns, 108th in his class. The only other team since 2005 to lead the Associated Press Top 25 without a top-100 recruit was Buddy Hield’s 2015-16 Oklahoma team, which made the Final Four.
“We know we can play with anybody,” junior guard Jordan Bowden said.
This rise shows how Barnes is changing the narrative that surrounded him at Texas, where he was fired despite leading the Longhorns to 16 March Madness appearances in 17 years.
Jerry Meyer, director of recruiting at 247Sports, said Barnes is proving that he is more than just a recruiter. Meyer credits his ability to find good fits for Tennessee as proof of his skill, even without a top-100 prospect.
“Obviously it’s not hard to identify five-stars if you’re a coach,” Meyer said. “They’re five-stars. Then it’s just can you beat out the competition to get them.”
He lauded coaches who develop like Barnes and Gregg Marshall of Wichita State.
“To me, those are your greatest recruiters. Those are evaluators, put it that way. They do a great job of evaluating and not just following the herd or looking at numbers from recruiting services or rankings.”
Barnes’ evaluation skills were evident at a recruiting weekend that helped build Tennessee’s program.
Visiting that weekend: Jordan Bone, De’Riante Jenkins, Josh Okogie and Grant Williams. Only Jenkins was ranked higher than 171st.
Bone caught the eye of assistant coach Rob Lanier, who had been scouting a different prospect. Now a three-year
starter, Bone leads the SEC in assists (6.6). Williams is the SEC’s leading scorer (20.1). Okogie was drafted in the first round out of Georgia Tech and Jenkins is VCU’s secondleading scorer.
Barnes’ ability to develop was felt by former Tennessee guard Kevin Punter Jr., recruited by previous coach Donnie Tyndall. After Barnes tweaked his mechanics, Punter watched his scoring average soar from 10.3 points in 2014-15 to 22.2 in 2015-16.
Barnes asked Williams and Admiral Schofield to lose weight to better handle physical SEC play. They’re now Tennessee’s top scorers.
Kyle Alexander didn’t play seriously until his junior year of high school, but the former soccer and volleyball player from Canada has become a solid rim protector. Bowden, a lightly recruited local player, has been pivotal for three seasons. Lamonte’ Turner has a knack for making clutch shots.
“These are all high-character kids with really good work ethics,” Tenessee assistant coach Lanier said. “You find out when you meet all these guys and hear all these guys speak, there’s a level of humility they all have.”
The team’s success has helped Tennessee attract more heralded recruits. Tennessee’s freshman class next season will include guard Josiah James, ranked 16th in his class according to the 247Sports Composite.
As higher-rated prospects continue to pick Tennessee, the Volunteers want to make sure they sign guys as coachable as their current players.
“What we have to make sure of is we don’t change our formula just to be sexy,” Lanier said.