The Tennessee Volunteers struck early in the college basketball transfer portal to kick off April with a commitment from a standout Belmont guard. It now appears head coach Rick Barnes has a chance of poaching a talented contributor from another small-school program.
In his latest edition of Calling My Shot for the college basketball transfer portal, On3.com‘s Pete Nakos logged a prediction with medium confidence that Tennessee will secure a commitment from Loyola big Miles Rubin.
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Miles Rubin stats (ESPN): 11.3 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 2.3 APG, 2.3 BPG
Rubin, standing at 6-foot-10, played center for his native Loyola Chicago Ramblers the past three seasons. He started all 33 games as a junior, leading the team in both rebounds and points while shooting 58.5 percent from the field. He also received A-10 All-Academic Team honors this past season.
He’s rated by 247Sports as the 75th-best player in the transfer portal and the 18th-best power forward. After rating as a three-star recruit out of high school, his development at Loyola has since made him a four-star recruit in the portal right now.
Related: Insider Sheds Light on Tennessee’s Approach to Transfer Portal
Ahead of his senior season, Rubin arrived in Knoxville on Friday and Nakos reports that Barnes and the Volunteers coaching staff are “in a position to move quickly” to secure his commitment. Given Nakos’ history of accuracy with predictions having a medium confidence level, there’s a good chance that Rubin plays for Tennessee next season.
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The Volunteers are in dire need of more frontcourt depth after J.P. Estrella transferred to join the Michigan Wolverines, Jaylen Carrey entered the portal, and Felix Okpara graduated.
If Tennessee can secure Rubin’s commitment to pair with the addition of Belmont shooting guard Tyler Lundblade, it stands to reason that Barnes’ focus could shift to finding a point guard to replace Ja’Kobi Gillespie.
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