2022-23 Vol Hoops Personnel Breakdown
In mid-October, we sat down with associate head coach Justin Gainey for an in-depth analysis of Tennessee’s scholarship personnel.
POINT GUARD
“I would say the most natural player for that position is Zakai Zeigler. I really expect his role to grow in the sense of him becoming more of a facilitator. For so much of his career, he’s been wired to score, score, score. While not taking away from that—it’s what he does best—it’s all about growth. For him, that next step is being able to create for others, get others scoring opportunities and putting them in a position to be successful. He’s had a great summer. He’s really worked on his shooting. He’s become a better 3-point shooter and increased his range on his 3-point shot. At his size, it’s going to be important for him to be able to shoot the basketball from deep. I know he’s put in the work this summer, and I’m just excited to see his growth and see him out there showing what he’s added to his game.
“The next guy at point guard would be Tyreke Key. All through his career, he’s been wired to score. With 1,650 points in four years at Indiana State, he’s been a prolific scorer, but he’s going to be asked to do some things differently. Obviously, we’re going to want him to continue to be that scorer, but also be able to initiate a little offense and play some point guard for us. Initially, that’s something he wasn’t all that comfortable with. But as the days go, he’s getting more comfortable and confident in himself with it. I would say, in our program, the point guard position—on both sides of the ball—may be the toughest to learn. For him, we trust his steady hand and his pace. He’s a guy that, mentally and physically, you can’t speed him up. That’s a great quality to have as a ball-handler and a guy that orchestrates the offense.
“The other guy who could see minutes at the point would be Santiago Vescovi. We’ve seen him play with the ball in his hands before—when he first got here—and there’ll be opportunities and situations where he will also be asked to handle the ball and initiate the offense. All of our guys have freedom to do that when they rebound and go out and push. But, in that half-court setting when we’re calling a play, there will be certain situations where he’s in there (playing the point), and we know he’s more than capable and ready.
“B.J. Edwards is kind of a combo guard. He’s been playing a little bit on the ball, but mostly off the ball. For him and his development, learning the system and learning the details and intricacies of the offense is going to be huge. He’s a hard worker. He plays really hard. He competes. He’s very competitive. Now, the next step for him is the details—the small details where, in high school, he might have been able to get away with things because he was more athletic or bigger at his position. Now, he’s got to figure out that guys have similar size, similar skillsets, and he has to be locked in on the details. That’s going to be a huge piece for him, but he’s a guy we feel can play on and off the ball. Whether it be point guard or shooting guard, he is that combo guard for us.”
WINGS
“Off the ball, we’ll start with Santiago Vescovi. He had a great season last year and was first-team All-SEC. He is one of the best, if not the best, player in the country at moving without the ball and creating scoring opportunities for himself. That can be by moving, cutting or screening. He’s a high-, high-IQ player that always seems to be one or two steps ahead of the defense. A lot of times, the guy guarding him is trying to catch up to him and figure out what he’s doing. On the offensive side of the ball, there’s not a player in the country that can free himself up better than Santi. He’s worked on the range on his shot, increasing that, and he’s shooting it really well from deep right now. The next step for him is being better with the ball in his hands, continuing to grow there. On the defensive side, he’s tremendous. He really does a great job of anticipating, being where he’s supposed to be and working really hard on the ball.
“Tyreke, off the ball, scores at every level and in any way. He can catch and shoot. He does it off the dribble. He can work in isolation. He can play off ball screens and can play in the post. There’s not an area on the floor where he’s not comfortable when you talk about scoring the basketball. He’s kind of one of those ‘professional scorers.’ His temperament never gets too high, never gets too low and he never remembers the last shot. That’s a great attitude and mentality to have when you talk about a guy that can score the basketball. So, with Tyreke, he is that really versatile piece.
“Josiah-Jordan James is a seasoned vet. He’s another cerebral, high-IQ player. Last year, he and Santi kind of anchored the defense, we expect them to do the same thing this year. When you talk about versatility—being able to guard on the perimeter and also guard post guys, he’s going to be asked to do that a lot this year. I could see us playing him at four a good amount. Him being able to guard those (post) positions is going to be huge. He has really quick, active hands, but from an IQ standpoint, he knows where the offense is going to be. Knowing where he needs to be a couple steps ahead is huge. And then offensively, we just continue to watch his game grow. Last year, he started out a little slow, had an injury with the finger. But you continue to see him blossom and gain more confidence in his offensive game. I expect for him to pick up right where he left off last year, shooting the basketball well and then just scoring the ball in variety of ways.
“Julian Phillips is another versatile guy who is able to play both forward positions. He can play the small forward and can also be that fourth guard out there. He is versatile inside-out. Similar to Tyreke, he scores the ball at all levels and he can score it in a variety of different ways. The biggest thing for him, and all of the freshmen, will be the adjustment on the defensive side of the floor and becoming more locked-in there, more detailed on that side. From an offensive standpoint, look for him to rebound and push sometimes. He can play all over the floor, one through four. He can really score it.
“Thinking about Jahmai Mashack, this is a big year for him because he had a solid freshman year, but as soon as the season was over, he was right back in the gym. The improvement that he’s made in his shot from last year to now is astronomical—it’s a completely different-looking shot and he’s gained confidence in it. His range has increased, but the form and the technique is a lot better. I think him developing offensively will be big without losing his strength, which is his ability to guard one through four and kind of be an image of Josiah. He’s similar to Josiah with that versatility on defense. He anticipates. He’s active, and he competes at a high level on that side of the ball. We’re going to need him to be an elite defender and take ownership in doing that. On the offensive, we want him to play within himself—continue to be able to knock down that catch-and-shoot jumper, get out and run hard in transition, create transition opportunities with his defense and continue to be active moving without the ball.
“The thing with D.J. Jefferson is that he has a chance to be like Keon Johnson or Jaden Springer in the sense of the athleticism he brings to the table. He is an elite-level athlete. At 6-5 with a plus-four, plus-five wingspan, he gets off the floor really easily and makes a lot of athletic plays. For him, the big part is the mental side of the game, the details side of the game and picking that stuff up. We need him to pick it up at a faster level. He’s a worker; he’ll continue to work. But he’s really got to focus in on becoming better defensively. Because of his size and his athleticism, when he wants to and when he puts his mind to it, he can be one of those Josiah-Jordan James-type defenders. He just has to put his mind to it and really focus in on the details. On a team this deep, it’s about recognizing that defense is his key to contributing as a freshman.”
FRONTCOURT
“With Olivier Nkamhoua, it’s great having him back, especially after going down in early February with the ankle injury last season. He spent a lot of time overseas with the Finnish national team, and between his rehab and workouts with us, and that experience with the national team, it seems to have given him a new confidence. He was able to compete with pros. He spent some time with Lauri Markkanen. He gained confidence in both his offensive and defensive sides of the game but also gained confidence back in that ankle by being able to play some real games in a real environment with officials. That was huge for him. On this team, we’re going to need him to be a great defender—along with Jonas (Aidoo)—and a great rim protector first and foremost. And then, be versatile enough to switch out and guard the point guard. Having him at the four will allow us to be able to switch some things and get him matched up on the perimeter. He’s athletic and mobile enough where you can do that. It’s understanding space, understanding keeping guys in front of him and not letting them get by, while also taking away the jump shot. On the defensive end, that’s where he needs to be. Offensively, he has to be a reliable scorer inside. He is one of the guys that, last year, did a pretty good job of scoring inside. We need him to take another step. Being able to score on the box, off the box, whether it’s catch-and-face or back-to-the-basket. Last year, he shot the three close to 45 percent. This year, we’ll need him to be in that same range and when he’s open, be able to knock it down. The third thing I would say is that we’ll need him to facilitate some as well. He’ll catch it in the post, and we run a lot of action, a lot of movement off the ball. Him being able to make those reads for us is going to be another big, big step for him.
“For Jonas Aidoo, we need him to be a physical post defensive presence. He did a nice job in spurts last year of impacting games on the defensive end. We need more of that this year. Again, he’s seven feet tall with a 7-6 wingspan. He’s massive—huge. He has to continue to use that to his advantage and be one of the best rim protectors in the country, which we have full faith that he can be. Ball-screen defense is going to be huge for him. He’s going to get attacked a lot in ball screens. Him being able to move his feet and stay between the ball and the basket, while also recovering to his man, is going to be huge. We also need him to bring that physical mentality at all times. He’s gotten bigger. He’s gained weight. We’re excited about that. Now, it’s just a matter of him knowing, ‘I can go in and bang with whoever,’ having that confidence. Offensively, Jonas’ gift is his touch and his ability to stretch, face the basket and shoot it. He’s worked hard on it this summer. You’ve seen glimpses of it in practice. He has to continue to have confidence in that and step up and shoot it confidently. The work he’s put in has allowed him to take that shot more confidently and be ready to catch and shoot it.
“With Uros Plavsic, I’ll start on defense. It’s about being physical without fouling. Being smart and physical without fouling is going to be huge for him. He’s our 7-foot Energizer Bunny. He brings a level of toughness to this group and a level of confidence as well. He’s an intricate part of this team. I would say from an IQ standpoint, he’s right up there with the Josiahs and the Santis on the team. He has a great feel for the game on both sides of the ball. He just needs to continue to be physical. Offensively, he has to be able to finish around the rim. He does a great job of posting big, posting deep and being physical and deep. He gets his man where he wants to. Now, he has to finish at a higher rate. He’s done that this preseason, finishing around 62 percent from the field. He has to continue that. Those chippies and those bunnies… he has to make those. I think he’s ready to do that.
“Tobe Awaka was a late addition. He was on the Nike EYBL circuit as of April before he came to join us. He brings a level of physicality that we haven’t seen in a while. He is stronger than he knows. All the guys on the team will tell you how physical he is. He is a physical presence and plays with force. He does a great job, offensively, of carving out space, being able to post up deep, post up big and create angles inside. He’s 6-8, but with a big wingspan, really huge hands and great touch around the rim. He’s a guy who will see the floor because of his physicality and his ability to duck in and finish around the basket. Also, maybe as a surprise to some, he can step out to 15 feet and he’s got good touch on his shot as well. Defensively, he has to continue to improve. The biggest thing is playing defense without fouling. He’s so physical, sometimes he doesn’t realize how physical he is. Sometimes he’s hitting guys and moving guys out of the way, and it’s a foul. He just needs to be aware of being physical without fouling.”
SCOUT TEAM
“Kent Gilbert is our oldest scout team member. He’s been through it and knows what it takes. This year, we expect him to be the leader on that team and keep those guys mentally in check because it can be tough. It can be monotonous on that scout team, just running defenses over and over and running other teams’ plays. We expect for him to compete on both sides of the ball and to play like a veteran and really take ownership of that scout team.
“Isaiah Sulack is another veteran member of the scout team. He has been limited from a physical standpoint, but we expect him to be engaged and help coach guys up from the sideline and assist Kent in in taking control of that team.
“Alec Kegler is a new, versatile scout team member. He can play inside and outside and is a guy we need to be able to guard multiple positions on scout team and be that tough matchup offensively for our guys when we start getting into scouts.”
“Evan Shiflet is another guy who has been limited with injury. He is working his way back, and we expect for him to kind of watch what Kent and Isaiah are doing and try to learn from them as much as possible. He’s a guard, and we need him to compete every day and help make guys like Santi, Tyreke B.J. and Zakai better.
“Kidd Brizek is as talented of a walk-on as any of the guys we have. Like all those newcomers, he’s figuring things out and learning from the older guys what it means to be a walk-on. He’s learning the level that you have to bring every single day. That level of intensity, that level of competitiveness… you have to bring it.
“Colin Coyne is an ideal walk on. His responsibility is to help the bigs, bang with them, be physical with them, and also make them guard him. He’s been great. He’s been a great late addition to this team. He’s as selfless as they come. He’s all about the team, all about winning, and I am excited and glad to have him a part of our program.”
