Rick Barnes Has Statement Recruiting Day For Tennessee Basketball

By Seth Manning
LeMonte Turner
Taylor Hicks- USA TODAY

The Rick Barnes hire by the Tennessee Volunteers was a very loud and publicized event. However, after nearly a month the recruiting trail had been anything but with a worrisome class not getting any help. That all changed on Tuesday with Tennessee picking up commits from four-star point guard LaMonte Turner and three-star big man Ray Kasongo joining combo guard Shembari Phillips and small forward Admiral Schofield.

LaMonte Turner will look to challenge for playing time immediately at point guard, a position of weakness for the Vols lineup. At 6-foot-2, 180 the Harvest, AL prospect was originally set to be a class of 2016 prospect but reclassified late into the process making him a great fit for a team scrambling for quality late like Tennessee. He averaged 12 points to go along with 6 assists per game for IMG Academy this past season. Turner cited both the admiration of Coach Barnes and the SEC in addition to playing time as what drew him to Tennessee. IMG coach John Mahoney had only positives to say about the future Vols PG “Oh man, he’s instant offense.”said Mahoney. “He can shoot it. He can take it to the rack and he can also see the floor. He gets his players involved.”

Ray Kasongo meanwhile should also be able to push for time among Tennessee’s big men. The 6-foot-9 JUCO recruit out of the College of Southern Idaho picked the Vols over another SEC competitor in Mississippi State. Tennessee’s power forward group is lacking both experience and depth, something he helps to fill. He averaged 6 points and 5 rebounds in limited playing time to go along with a 59 percent FG percentage. Analysts have compared him to now former LSU star and NBA Draft prospect Jordan Mickey in both his instincts and ability to play taller than his height. Kasongo has three years of eligibility remaining.

Barnes has stated intentions of adding a player or two more to the class. Look for recent visitors Ebuka Izundu and Kyle Alexander to be mentioned among the top of the list of remaining likely targets in the coming days.

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