Rick Barnes says two players could be limited for Tennessee's exhibition game vs. Indiana
No. 12 Tennessee could have two players limited in Sunday’s exhibition game No. 17 Indiana at Food City Center. Head coach Rick Barnes said before practice Friday afternoon that both senior guard Jahmai Mashack and sophomore forward JP Estrella have been “hampered” after colliding and hitting knees in a recent practice.
“They both hit knees the other day in practice and they both have been hampered by that,” Barnes said. “But we’ll see today. I think they’ll both will do a little bit and we’ll see by tomorrow. And then we’ll see by what, how it happens.
“But if (they can’t play), it’s just an opportunity for some guys that probably wasn’t sure how much they would play, it gives them a chance to be ready to see what they can do.”
Charity Exhibition: Tennessee vs. Indiana, Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, SEC Network+
Tennessee and Indiana are scheduled Sunday for a 3 p.m. Eastern Time start. The game can be seen as an online live stream via SEC Network+. The charity exhibition benefits The John McClendon Foundation, which provides minorities access and opportunity through a scholarship program and leadership initiative.
Estrella was limited during the summer and much of the fall while dealing with a foot issue. Barnes said Monday during an appearance at the Knoxville Quarterback Club that the Vols have been overly cautious with Estrella, doing everything they could to avoid surgery.
“We didn’t want that to happen,” Barnes said on Monday. “He’s done very little. He’s he’s behind conditioning wise. He’s going to have to pick that up. He played better as the game went (against Davidson).”
Estrella, the 6-foot-11, 241-pound sophomore from Scarborough, Maine, averaged 5.0 minutes off the bench while playing in 25 games as a freshman last season. He averaged 1.6 points and 0.8 rebounds per game while shooting 71.4% from the floor.
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Rick Barnes: ‘We know we want to get looks with a lot of different guys’
Estrella should play a much bigger role in his second season after Tennessee lost both center Jonas Aidoo and power forward Tobe Awaka to the NCAA Transfer Portal. Aidoo transferred to Arkansas while Awaka went to Arizona.
The Vols added Ohio State center Felix Okpara and Charlotte stretch forward Igor Milicic Jr. out of the transfer portal. They also went to the portal to get North Florida guard Chaz Lanier and former Hofstra wing Darlinstone Dubar.
Barnes also said Friday that he doesn’t have scripted minutes for any players as the new-look Vols play their first public scrimmage. Tennessee hosted Davidson last Sunday for the annual closed-door scrimmage between the two programs.
“We’ll just play it,” Barnes said. “But we know we want to get looks with a lot of different guys and maybe some different lineups, but if we don’t have a full roster of guys, I’m not sure how much we can do that.”
