Tennessee landed a huge commitment out of the transfer portal on Friday with a commitment from North Florida guard Chaz Lanier.
Lanier is an offensive weapon out of the portal as a 6-foot-4, 199-pound guard with a high-level scoring ability. The Nashville native is Tennessee’s fourth portal pickup this offseason joining Hofstra wing Darlinstone Dubar, Ohio State center Felix Okpara, and Charlotte forward Igor Milicic Jr.
Lanier is the 11th-ranked prospect and the third-ranked shooting guard out of the portal according to 247 Sports’ rankings. Lanier averaged 19.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game last season with seven games scoring more than 25 points.
With Lanier’s commitment, Tennessee jumped up from the 34th-ranked team in the portal to the 13th-ranked team. Tennessee went over SEC foes such as Ole Miss, Texas, Florida, and Vanderbilt in the process.
More from RTI: WATCH: Tennessee Commit Chaz Lanier Highlight Tape
All four of Tennessee’s player additions are four-star prospects out of the portal. Lanier ranks as the highest among the bunch at No. 11 with Okpara behind at No. 50 in the rankings. Okpara, the ninth-ranked center in the portal, is 6-foot-11, 235 pounds with two years of eligibility and averaged 6.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game last season. Tennessee lost size down low this offseason but gained a good bit back with Okpara.
Dubar ranks as the No. 121 overall prospect and No. 26 small forward in 247’s portal rankings as a player coming off of a breakout senior season at Hofstra. Dubar averaged 17.8 points per game during his senior season with the Pride.
Milicic Jr. comes to Tennessee as the No. 232 overall player and the No. 37 center in the portal but plays more of the stretch-four forward role. The 6-foot-10 player was a versatile scoring forward for the 49ers last season and can give Tennessee a similar replacement for the Josiah-Jordan James role.
Lanier’s addition to Tennessee’s roster gives the Vols two more spots to work with but Rick Barnes’ squad looks to be good to go barring the addition of a next-level player. Tennessee returns three senior guards in Zakai Zeigler, Jordan Gainey, and Jahmai Mashack, along with three second-year players in JP Estrella, Cade Phillips, and Cameron Carr. The Vols are also bringing in four-star guard Bishop Boswell from the class of 2024.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee basketball coverage throughout the offseason.
To see highlights from Tennessee transfer commit Chaz Lanier, click here.
