Is Freddie Dilione The Answer At Backup Point Guard?

The Tennessee Volunteers had a limited amount of ball handlers without Zakai Zeigler. Is Freddie Dilione the guy they're looking for?

The dead silence at Thompson-Boling Arena when Zakai Zeigler went down against Arkansas late in the season was maybe more deflating than any loss the Vols had last year. Just as Tennessee was getting healthy, they lost their point guard, star, and one of their leaders the week before the postseason. What was even worse was there was no immediate answer. This season, there is.

Now, Zeigler will be back soon enough. Torn acl recoveries seem to be quicker now than even just a decade ago as medicine and therapy get more advanced. However, the start of the season will be just over the 8-month mark since Zeigler's injury. Despite no official update since surgery, eight months would be a very fast recovery from his injury. The Vols could need a different point guard to open the season. That's where Freddie Dilione comes in. The redshirt freshman came to campus early last season along with D.J. Jefferson. Those two were technically supposed to be part of the Vols' 2023 class with Cameron Carr, J.P. Estrella, and Cade Phillips. While Dilione was never going to set foot in a game last season, coming in early often helps players learn the system and get stronger before their freshman year. Dilione is listed at 6'5 on the Vols roster and plays more as a combo guard than a true point guard, but he's a better primary playmaker and handler than a guy like Santiago Vescovi. The first thing that impresses me about Dilione is his positional size. While Zeigler is limited in scoring the basketball at just 5'9, Dilione won't be as he gets older, won't be.

As I said, Dilione naturally plays more of a combo guard, so you typically don't want him handling the ball all the time. However, he showed the ability to do it well at Word of God Christian Academy this past season. He tends to understand when the ball needs to be moved and does a good job finding shooters, whether with swing or skip passes on the perimeter. Operating in the pick-and-roll will not be as effective with him as with Zeigler, but obviously, that isn't his strength. I have confidence in Dilione to hit those passes on the pin-down screens, as he seems to understand timing pretty well. One thing Rick Barnes does need to do is to get Dilione to understand that scoring is not his primary job while Zeigler is out. He definitely can score and will score in the open floor, but in the half-court, he needs to get Tennessee into their offense. Barnes and the coaching staff using Dilione defensively will also be very interesting to watch. His size allows him to guard all perimeter positions, and because of that, even with Zeigler out, Barnes can mix and match his guards as long as Dilione is on the floor.

I think Dilione can improve using his size in transition and shot selection. He has improved in both aspects over the last season, but too often, I felt he was shying away from contact in transition. I understand not wanting to get called for a charge, but being able to finish over guys is not an ability that every guard has, and in fact, many guards need to learn it. Dilione, with his size, can do it naturally. In terms of his shot selection, it's understandable why Dilione has struggled with that in the past. When you're 6'5 as a guard, getting shots off over guys is extremely easy. So we've established that the Vols can hold steady if Zeigler is out for a little. If he's not, and when he comes back, we could see some two "point guard" lineups with Zeigler and Dilione on the floor simultaneously. Barnes has used those in the past when he could. Overall, Freddie Dilione is evidence of one thing: The Vols have way more options this season than last.

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