Tennessee coach Rick Barnes during the NCAA Tournament Elite 8 game against Michigan at the United Center in Chicago on March 29, 2026. Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Tennessee Basketball Hosts Elite Transfer Target

Originally posted on Tennessee Volunteers on SI
By Wesley Powell | Last updated Mar 30, 2026 6:00 PM ET

Tennessee’s 2025-26 basketball season just wrapped up, and the Volunteers made it to the Elite Eight for the third straight year. The season had lots of ups and downs, and even though the season did not end the way they wanted, Tennessee still has a lot to celebrate.

There are still so many question marks to be answered about how Tennessee will look next season. The biggest question will be whether or not Nate Ament will go to the draft. A mock draft by CBS Sports from March 27th had Nate Ament going ninth overall to the Bucks, although some mock drafts have him going late lottery, all the way to outside of the lottery.

As for the team, with the modern transfer portal, the turnaround will be quick for Rick Barnes, who already claimed in an interview that he is not going to retire. Tennessee is already hosting a transfer portal target, just one day after losing to Michigan.

Tennessee Hosts Elite Guard Tyler Lundblade for Visit

MATT DAYHOFF/JOURNAL STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Belmont transfer Tyler Lundblade is set to visit Knoxville from today, March 30th, through April 1st, as first reported by On3.

The 6-foot-5 guard has one season of eligibility left and will be a sixth-year senior next season.

Last season, Lundblade averaged 15.6 points per game and shot 40.6% from three for Belmont. Two years ago, he shot an insane 48.1% from three in his first season with Belmont.

He was unranked coming out of high school, according to On3. He started his career at SMU, but he did not appear in any games. He then transferred to TCU, where he spent two years and appeared in 15 games.

He is currently ranked as the 24th-best player and sixth-best shooting guard in the transfer portal.

The transfer portal does not open until April 7th, but because Lundbalde entered the portal early, he is able to visit Tennessee. What is more noticeable about the visit is that due to an NCAA dead period starting on Thursday, April 2nd, he will not be able to visit or communicate with any other schools until three days after the portal is opened on April 10th.

Former Tennessee guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie also spent some time at Belmont at the beginning of his career. Barnes and Company can only try their best to replicate the success that Gillespie had with Lundblade if they are to land him.

This article first appeared on Tennessee Volunteers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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