USC Upstate transfer guard Jordan Gainey committed to Tennessee basketball Tuesday afternoon, the shooting guard announced on his Instagram. Gainey is the son of Tennessee associate head coach Justin Gainey and has two years of eligibility remaining.
Gainey has been a key shooting guard for USC Upstate in each of his two seasons, averaging 13.8 points as a freshman and 15.2 points as a sophomore. The 6-foot-4, 175 pound guard shot 39% from the field and 35% from three-point range as a sophomore after shooing 47% from the field and 47% from three-point range as a sophomore.
“We obviously know and love Jordan’s family, but his ability as a player stands on its own merit,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. “He plays with a high basketball IQ and is a guy who makes his teammates better. We love his offensive versatility and his ability to shoot and score the ball in a variety of ways. In addition to giving us another shot-maker, he also competes on the defensive end and led (the Big South) in steals last year.”
The effective shooter played off the ball for the Spartans where he added 3.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game last season.
Gainey was a high volume scorer for USC Upstate as a sophomore, scoring 20-plus points eight times including a season-high 28 points against South Carolina State.
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In four games against power five opponents this season, Gainey averaged 12.3 points per game including a 24 point outing against Clemson. In three games against power five opponents as a freshman, Gainey averaged 7.7 points per game including a two point performance against Tennessee.
Gainey’s commitment is one of Tennessee’s first offseason personnel moves. Olivier Nkamhoua entered the transfer portal and declared for the NBA Draft but there’s been no announcements from Santiago Vescovi, Josiah-Jordan James, Uros Plavsic or Julian Phillips on their immediate basketball future.
The shooting guard is Tennessee’s first addition in the transfer portal to go along with three prep prospects. Tennessee is now two scholarships over the limit for the 2023-24 season though the numbers are likely to more than work out. It would be surprising if all of Vescovi, James, Plavsic and Phillips return to Tennessee and other players could still transfer.
Rick Barnes and his staff hosted a pair of transfer visitors last weekend— Harvard power forward Chris Ledlum and Northern Colorado small forward Dalton Knecht. Ledlum has visited both Indiana and St. John’s while Knecht has visited Oregon.
