8. Rick Barnes Gets His Star
During his first three years as Tennessee’s head basketball coach, Rick Barnes had failed to bring in a top-100 recruit to Tennessee. He got very close when the Vols landed the commitment and then signature of four-star center/power forward D.J. Burns late in the 2018 cycle after he reclassified. But Burns rated just outside the top 100 overall players on 247Sports, coming in at No. 108 overall.
Burns was still a huge get for the basketball Vols, but Barnes still hadn’t hauled in the “big fish” in recruiting. That is, until September of this year.
Five-star guard Josiah James announced his commitment to Tennessee over his other two finalists, Duke and Clemson, and ultimately signed with the Vols in the first signing period of the 2019 class. James is currently ranked as the No. 15 overall player and No. 3 combo guard in the 2019 class according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, and he’s expected to play point guard for Tennessee once he arrives on campus.
James became the first five-star to sign with the Vols since Robert Hubbs did so in 2013, and he became the highest-rated player to sign with UT since Tobias Harris in 2010.
