Tennessee point guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie ranked No. 8 in ESPN Transfer Portal rankings
New Tennessee Basketball point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie is the No. 8 overall player in NCAA Transfer Portal, according to ESPN’s updated rankings on Friday. Gillespie committed to the Vols last Friday and signed on Monday.
“Gillespie was one of the best point guards in the country after transferring to College Park from Belmont last spring,” ESPN’s Jeff Borzello wrote. “He earned third-team All-Big Ten honors, averaging 14.7 points and 4.8 assists while shooting 40.7% from 3-point range. He went for 24 points vs. Kam Jones and Marquette in November.”
Gillespie is taking an official visit to Tennessee this weekend alongside his former Maryland teammate, shooting guard Rodney Rice, who also entered the NCAA Transfer Portal.
Rodney Rice averaged 13.8 points per game at Maryland
Rice, who visited Villanova before the trip to Tennessee, was ranked No. 16 by ESPN in the Transfer Portal Rankings. Both Gillespie and Rice entered the portal after former Maryland head coach Kevin Willard was hired at Villanova.
“Rice averaged 13.8 points on the season,” Borzello wrote for ESPN, “but was one of the most dangerous scorers in the Big Ten during the second half of the campaign. In an eight-game stretch from late January to late February, he averaged 18.8 points and shot 45.1% from 3-point range.”
Rice started 32 times in 36 games, averaging 31.1 minutes per game. He made 80 3-pointers on the season, going 80-for-214.
The move to Tennessee is a homecoming for Gillespie, who is a native of Greeneville, Tenn. He played two seasons at Belmont in Nashville before transferring to Maryland.
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“A dynamic point who can really shoot the ball from deep and get his teammates involved, Ja’Kobi is a fearless competitor with a high basketball IQ,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. “We expect him to help lead our team from day one and we feel quite fortunate to have him as a part of our program.”
Tennessee has signed two players out of the NCAA Transfer Portal
Tennessee has also signed Vanderbilt forward Jaylen Carey out of the transfer portal. He committed on Sunday night and signed with the Vols on Tuesday.
The 6-foot-8, 245-pound Carey averaged 8.0 points and 5.7 rebounds in 20.2 minutes per game in his one season at Vanderbilt, after starting his college career at James Madison.
“Jaylen is a physical power forward with versatility,” Barnes said, “who can play with his back to the basket or face up. He is a proven SEC competitor with excellent hands, superb offensive instincts, quality passing ability and a strong feel for the game.
“Jaylen’s style will complement the post players we already have and we cannot wait to get to work with him.”
