Tennessee basketball secured a significant transfer portal addition last week with the commitment of Chaz Lanier, who chose the Vols over Kentucky and BYU.
Lanier’s commitment is a major win for Tennessee, as the talented shooting guard is set to be a key player on next season’s roster. The entire Tennessee team contributed to landing Lanier, with the players even waiting in the locker room to greet him when he arrived in Knoxville at midnight for his official visit.
Senior guard Jahmai Mashack expressed his excitement on Twitter after Lanier’s commitment, saying, “Mission accomplished. Got the bros we wanted even though we kept it real about EVERYTHING! The brotherhood continues. Let’s get this WORK!”
The shooting guard was correct, Tennessee did a really good job of landing the players that it wanted in the portal. Rick Barnes and his staff hosted five recruits onto campus for visits in the portal and they landed all but one of them.
Belmont forward Cade Tyson, perhaps the best shooter in the transfer portal, chose North Carolina over Tennessee after visiting both schools. Hofstra wing Darlinstone Dubar and Ohio State center Felix Okpara both committed to Tennessee shortly after visiting Knoxville.
The shooting guard was correct, Tennessee did a really good job of landing the players that it wanted in the portal. Rick Barnes and his staff hosted five recruits onto campus for visits in the portal and they landed all but one of them.
Belmont forward Cade Tyson, perhaps the best shooter in the transfer portal, chose North Carolina over Tennessee after visiting both schools. Hofstra wing Darlinstone Dubar and Ohio State center Felix Okpara both committed to Tennessee shortly after visiting Knoxville.
Charlotte forward Igor Milicic Jr. visited Tennessee between visits to Nebraska and Baylor and committed to the Vols a week and a half after the Baylor visit. Lanier visited BYU, Kentucky and Tennessee in a number of days and then committed to the Vols shortly after the three visits.
It was four players that Tennessee targeted quickly after they entered the transfer portal and they all fill major needs on the Vols’ roster.
Okpara is an elite rim protecting center who fills the void that Jonas Aidoo and Tobe Awaka’s departure to the transfer portal left on Tennessee’s roster.
Dubar and Milicic are wings that have the versatility to play the four-spot defensively while also spacing the floor with a strong ability to shoot the ball. Those two skill sets will help Tennessee replace Josiah-Jordan James.
Lanier is a shooting guard with a high-level ability to shoot from the perimeter and create his own shot of the dribble. While no one can replace Knecht’s production, Lanier will help fill part of the void that Knecht’s departure left.
All four players are talented basketball players who fill a void on Tennessee’s roster. But as Mashack stated, they also embraced Tennessee’s culture and wanted to be about the same things the Volunteers’ program is about.
