Tennessee’s exit from the 2025 NCAA Tournament marked the beginning of a critical month during the offseason to assemble its roster for the 2025-26 basketball season.
The NCAA transfer portal opened March 24 and will close after 30 days. Over 1,000 players have entered the transfer portal during the first week.
Tennessee is only set to retain center Felix Okpara from its 2024-25 starting lineup. Additional Tennessee returnees for the 2025-26 season include guard Bishop Boswell, and forwards Cade Phillips and J.P. Estrella.
The Vols’ incoming freshmen class is composed of guards Amari Evans and Troy Henderson, along with center DeWayne Brown.
The NCAA has increased basketball scholarship limits from 12 to 15, allowing for Tennessee to sign as many as eight players during the offseason.
Below is an early look at players in the NCAA transfer portal who could be targets for the Vols.
Tennessee basketball early potential transfers for 2025-26 roster
Isaac McKneely
McKneely was one of Virginia’s top players offensively in the 2024-25 season. He started 32 games for the Cavaliers and averaged 14.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.
Class: Junior
Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 195 pounds
High school: Poca High School (Poca, West Virginia)
Ja’Kobi Gillespie
Gillespie has ties to Tennessee in college and high school. He played his first two seasons of college basketball at Belmont and is from Greeneville, Tennessee.
Gillespie was a part of Maryland’s “Crab Five” team that made the 2025 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. He averaged 14.7 points per game and a team-high 4.8 assists per contest, while shooting 40.7 percent in three-point attempts.
Class: Junior
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 186 pounds
High school: Greeneville High School (Greeneville, Tennessee)
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
