Chaz Lanier isn't Dalton Knecht, but 'Chazzing' is more than enough for Tennessee

NASHVILLE — Rick Barnes was asked Friday if it was too simplistic to say Chaz Lanier replaced Dalton Knecht on the Tennessee Basketball roster. No, it’s not too simplistic. It’s just wrong. 

“We didn’t talk about him replacing Dalton,” Barnes said during his postgame press conference, after Tennessee’s 83-72 win over Texas in the SEC Tournament quarterfinal.

“I don’t think at any point in time I’ve compared him to Dalton when we’re talking one on one,” Barnes added later, circling back to reiterate his point. “I’m always comparing those guys to where they want to get at the highest level.”

Knecht reached the highest level, becoming a first-round pick in the NBA Draft after his Consensus First Team All-American one-and-done season at Tennessee, by averaging 21.7 points per game and winning SEC Player of the Year. He shot 45.8% from the field and 39.7% from the 3-point line. 

Lanier entered Friday’s game averaging 17.9 points per game, winning the SEC’s Newcomer of the Year award after shooting 43.2% from the field and 40.5% from the 3-point line.

He added another Knecht-like performance in the win over Texas at Bridgestone Arena, exploding for 17 points in the first nine minutes of the game and finishing with 23 on 9-for-15 shooting. 

But that’s where the similarities end. 

“I will say this to you,” Barnes said, “the difference in the two would be I never had to tell Dalton to shoot. I beg Chaz to shoot sometimes because he’s so conscientious of wanting to be a part of it.”

Up Next: No. 4 Tennessee vs. No. 1 Auburn, Saturday, 1 p.m. ET, ESPN

Lanier’s unselfishness — to a fault — showed on Friday. After scoring 17 of Tennessee’s first 21 points, he didn’t take another shot from the field for almost nine minutes. 

“Chaz is extremely selfless,” Tennessee assistant coach Rod Clark said. “Sometimes he probably needs to be a little bit more selfish for us.”

He scored four points in the second half, taking just four shots in 16 minutes. 

“I thought more in the second half he should have been more aggressive than the first half,” Clark said. “After he got on the run, (Texas) kind of started holding and grabbing and trying to double him a little bit.”

Lanier’s aggressiveness helps his teammates more than anything else. Clark recalled the added defensive attention from Texas on Lanier leaving Igor Milicic Jr. open for a dunk. Or another possession that Jordan Gainey ended with an open run to the rim for a layup.

“When Chaz is aggressive early in the game,” Clark said, “that’s what he does for our guys. That’s why we need him to play with that aggression and play with that tenacity when it comes to scoring the basketball … when he plays aggressive like that, it opens up everything for everyone else.” 

‘When he’s hitting it, it just lights a fire I think under everybody’

Lanier has made his own improvements the last two weeks, according to Barnes — moving better without the ball, setting up defenders better, making more than one cut.

“Learning to adjust in ways being guarded, grabbed and stuff,” Barnes said. “He’s worked hard. Learned how to make two, three, four cuts, keep himself moving, (becoming) harder to guard. 

“When he’s open, he’s got to shoot it. When he’s hitting it, it just lights a fire I think under everybody.”

Lanier’s 23 points against Texas was his 10th game with 23 or more this season. He scored a season-high 30 at Texas A&M three weeks ago on 8-for-13 shooting from the 3-point line. He had 25 against Baylor in November on seven made threes in the first half alone. He had another 23 against South Carolina on Senior Day on Saturday, scoring 16 during a game-changing five-minute stretch in the second half.

He started 7-for-9 Friday, including a run of four straight makes and five of six to score his 17 points and build Tennessee’s lead to 21-14 after the opening nine minutes. 

“Chaz was doing Chaz,” senior forward Igor Milcic Jr. said. “We’ve seen it before. We’ve seen it (against) Baylor. We’ve seen it in another game. I don’t remember who it was a few weeks back, but Chaz was Chazzing.” 

That’s exactly what Tennessee needs Saturday against No. 1 Auburn in the SEC Tournament semifinals, scheduled for a 1 p.m. Eastern Time start on ESPN.

“When Chaz is Chazzing,” Milicic said, “it’s good. It’s always good.”