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Tennessee five-star Nate Ament moves up to No. 2 overall in final 2025 On3 150

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•04/29/25•

GrantRamey

Nate Ament Instagram
Nate Ament Instagram

Nate Ament moved up one spot to No. 2 overall in the final 2025 On3 150 on Monday. The five-star small forward is the highest-ranked recruit to sign with Tennessee Basketball in program history. 

Five-star small forward and BYU signee AJ Dybantsa stayed at No. 1 overall while Ament came in ahead of five-star shooting guard Darryn Peterson, five-star power forward and Duke signee Cameron Boozer and five-star power forward and North Carolina signee Caleb Wilson.  

Ament, the No. 2 small forward in the class and the No. 1 overall player in the state of Virginia, is just the third Tennessee signee to be ranked in the top six nationally. Scotty Hopson was ranked No. 5 overall by Rivals in 2005 and Tobias Harris was ranked No. 6 overall in the 2011 class.

ESPN NBA Draft analyst Jonathan Givony believes Ament can be better than the No. 2 overall player. NBA personnel believe there’s a chance he could be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

“I think he’ll be one of the best players in the SEC next season with the platform (Tennessee) will give him,” Givony said after Ament signed with Tennessee this week. “Some NBA scouts think he could end up being the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. He has that kind of talent.”

Nate Ament is Tennessee’s seventh five-star commit under Rick Barnes

Ament is the seventh five-star commitment for Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes and the first since Julian Phillips in the 2022 class. Phillips was ranked No. 13 overall. He was the No. 4 small forward and the No. 1 player out of the state of South Carolina. 

Barnes signed five-star point guard Kennedy Chandler and five-star power forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield in the 2021 class Chandler was the No. 12 overall player in the country, the No. 2 point guard nationally and the No. 1 overall player in the state of Tennessee. Huntley-Hatfield was ranked as high as No. 21 in the class.

Barnes signed two five-stars in the 2020 class, too, in Jaden Springer and Keon Johnson. Springer was ranked No. 10 overall and Johnson was No. 16 nationally. Springer was the No. 2 shooting guard and Johnson was ranked No. 4 at the position. 

Johnson was the No. 1 overall player in the state of Tennessee and Springer was the No. 1 overall player in the state of North Carolina.

Josiah-Jordan James was also a five-star prospect in the 2019 class as ranked by ESPN and Rivals.

On3 Scouting Report — Nate Ament 

Jamie Shaw, On3 National Recruiting Analyst: “Nate Ament has a basketball player’s frame. While thin, he has good length and excellent positional size. It is that positional size that allows for his versatility on the floor. Ament is comfortable on the ball at each level. In fact, his passing and processing might be his most intriguing attribute on the court. Ament is an excellent passer with both hands, from multiple levels, off a live dribble or set. The jump shot release can get a little long, but he can knock down a three when given time and his size helps get into his shot motion. Ament plays with a good pace, while lacking true blow by speed, he has a good pace and is typically either bigger or more mobile than his defender at this point to help him get to various spots on the floor. Ament is thin with narrow shoulders, he will need to continue adding weight. He is also a quiet by nature person, and a late bloomer. Continue to watch as he develops. He has a unique game that enhances the level of those around him.”

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