Barnes piecing together identity at Tennessee
- Wyeth Wilson
- May 10, 2015
- 2 min read
When Rick Barnes was hired by Tennessee, many wondered if the motivation would still be there after he was let go following 17 seasons at Texas.
And though he has yet to coach a game in Knoxville, Barnes and his staff have proven on the recruiting trail that the motivation is still there.
Barnes has added three players to Tennessee’s 2015 recruiting class in a little more than a month on the job, as well as retaining the two commitments brought in by previous coach Donnie Tyndall.
As of now, Tennessee’s 2015 class includes guards Shembari Phillips and Lamonte’ Turner and forwards Admiral Schofield, Ray Kasongo, and Kyle Alexander.
“We are not going to take guys and not have a place for them,” Barnes said shortly after he was hired. “We wouldn’t do that.
“I’ve always believed, that, when everybody is honest and open, it always works out. We want the best for everybody. All we can do is, and we have done it with our current players, is talk about what we are trying to build, talk about how we’re trying to do things. Some of them will probably embrace it more than others. But that’s how it is, probably everywhere.”
When Barnes got to campus, Tennessee’s recruiting class consisted of only Phillips and Schofield.
Barnes was tasked with convincing them to stay on board, and he succeeded.
It wasn’t until four weeks after he was hired that Barnes brought in new faces to the 2015 class, as the Vols’ staff added both Kasongo and Turner on the same day.
Turner is a three-star point guard from Bradenton, Florida, who was originally a 2016 recruit, but reclassified back to the 2015 class.
Kasongo is a three-star power forward out of the College of Southern Idaho who has three seasons remaining to play for the Vols.
The 6-9, 235-pound Canadian native is the number 32 overall junior-college prospect and the number 13 junior-college power forward in the 2015 class.
Kasongo was originally headed to Oregon for the 2014-2015 season, but was not accepted into the school.
“It’s a great day for Tennessee,” director of basketball scouting for 247Sports Jerry Meyer said when UT landed Turner and Kasongo. “These are both good players and they are going to help.”
A little over a week later, Barnes and his staff made their third addition to their inaugural recruiting class, another Canadian, this time the 6-10, 200-pound forward Alexander.
"We are really excited about welcoming Kyle into our program, because he truly has incredible upside," Barnes said. "He's only been playing basketball for about two and a half years, but it's clear the sky is the limit in terms of his potential.
“I love his demeanor on the court and the way he runs the floor. He's a great kid from a wonderful family, and my staff and I have been following his development for a while now."
Tennessee is still targeting several players for the 2015 class, as they have at least one more scholarship remaining.
But the current five-player class for the Vols is what has helped solidify Barnes’ image as the Vols’ head coach.
Comentários