No Need To Panic After Julian Phillips Enters Portal
One day before the transfer portal entry window closed in college basketball, Tennessee rising sophomore Julian Phillips entered the transfer portal. There's no denying that Phillips was a good fit in Rick Barnes' defensive system, as his versatility took a ton of pressure off of other guys. However, the reality is that Tennessee is probably way more prepared for this than we can imagine.
Despite entering the portal, it seems that Phillips' number one option is still staying in the draft and ultimately getting to the NBA. While schools will take a crack at recruiting the former five-star, it seems more unlikely that he won't be playing college basketball season.
There's another aspect: Would Tennessee have attacked the portal and gotten a guy like Chris Ledlum if they anticipated Julian Phillips coming back? The answer to that is probably not. Rick Barnes uses a very specific type of forward as a three or a four. With no guarantee of Phillips coming back, getting that type of player would be very difficult had they waited around for Phillips' decision.
So Barnes went and got his guy in Chris Ledlum. Ledlum isn't as big as Phillips, but he's a very physical forward that can play in the post. We've seen these players work at Tennessee, with Grant Williams being exhibit A. Alongside Ledlum, Tobe Awaka will be a bigger "four" that can protect the rim. It'll be very interesting to see how Barnes rotates those guys, but in terms of pure roster construction, it's clear Barnes has his ways. We'll have to trust him and his staff, and given the teams he's put together since the 2017-18 season, we have no reason not to.
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