Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports
Trae Golden transferring may be a big loss for the Tennessee Volunteers, but his replacement will be Memphis transfer Antonio Barton. However, can Barton be just as effective on the court and actually replace him in the 2013-14 college basketball season?
Let’s ask the stats what they think.
Golden last season: 12.1 points per game, 3.9 assists per game, 38.3 percent from the field, 29.5 percent from behind the arc.
Barton last season: 5.6 points per game, 1.1 assists per game, 39.7 percent from the field, 40 percent from behind the arc.
As you can see, Golden’s stats are better, but Barton is a more efficient shooter. The biggest thing to note is that Golden averaged 30.3 minutes per game and Barton averaged 16.7 minutes per game last season. That is a huge difference, so it will be interesting to see Barton playing more time and having a much bigger role for the Volunteers.
I am sure Tennessee fans will miss Golden, but Barton is not a bad replacement, assuming that he meets expectations. Barton would have likely been the starter for Memphis in the upcoming season if Joe Jackson did not return.
Whether the case, the Volunteers cannot disappoint in the 2013-14 season. They have done that the last couple of years and it has to stop. Once again, this will be a top 25 team and it will have the talent to compete in the SEC.
The SEC may not be regarded as highly as the Big Ten or ACC, but it still has Kentucky and Florida in it. Both teams should be ranked in the top 10 to start the season.
Barton has shown to be a pretty good player in the amount of minutes he has played and he is a great replacement for Golden. Hopefully he has a smooth transition for the Volunteers and is able to be the field general that they desperately need.
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