Tennessee 5-star basketball commit makes his intentions clear, and huge NIL bag won’t change it

The Tennessee Volunteers put together one heck of a season under Rick Barnes, finishing fifth overall in the AP poll and advancing all the way to the Elite Eight behind a stacked, veteran-led roster.

Going 30-8 in the SEC is no small feat, and it speaks to Barnes’ ability to both win the transfer portal and to develop talent in-house. Now the future arrives on Tennessee’s doorstep, however, and it’s unclear how exactly the roster will take shape.

The Vols are set to lose just about every major contributor from their 2024-25 squad. Zakai Zegler, Chaz Lanier, Igor Milicic Jr., Jordan Gainey, Darlinstone Dubar and Jahmai Maschak were Tennessee’s six highest-usage players this past season, per KenPom. All of ’em were seniors.

Tennessee is basically starting from scratch. Guys like Felix Okpara and Cade Phillips figure to step into expanded roles, but we don’t really know the heart of this Volunteers team. That is beginning to change, however, as Barnes is busy stockpiling new talent.

He has already secured a major win in the transfer portal, prying senior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie away from Maryland after Kevin Willard’s contentious departure. Now, Barnes has a new five-star freshman in the mix, earning the commitment of 6-foot-11 wing Nate Ament, the No. 4 recruit in a loaded 2025 high school class at 247 Sports.

Ament is destined for the 2026 NBA Draft, though, and he knows it. Don’t expect a long tenure in Knoxville.

Ament was straightforward with ESPN’s Jonathan Givony when announcing his decision to join Tennessee. “Coach Barnes sees me as a one-and-done type player,” Ament said. “He has done it before with Kevin Durant. He sees me as that kind of guy.”

It’s not uncommon for top recruits to design their college careers around the one-and-done model, but very few announce that intention months before the regular season. Cooper Flagg made a whole spectacle of flirting with a return to Duke, even when we all knew he’d be gone as soon as the season ended.

Ament isn’t beating around the bush, though. Nor should he. There’s nothing wrong with this sort of honesty. This is not a firm commitment to the 2026 NBA Draft. If next season goes sideways, Ament can always walk it back and stick around. But, assuming he lives up to the hype (and folks, he will live up to the hype), Ament is a probable top-10 pick a year from now. That is his goal, as it ought to be, and he’s keeping it real.

This should not take away from Tennessee fans’ enjoyment of Ament’s tenure. He’s a special prospect, rocketing up draft boards over the last year as a 6-foot-11, shot-making wing with flashes of creation chops and a lofty defensive ceiling. This is a loaded draft class and Ament lacks the longstanding acclaim of other top recruits like Cam Boozer and Darryn Peterson, but does it matter? The NBA doesn’t really care how a player stacks up when he’s 16. It’s about how he stacks up when he’s 18 with a chance to go pro.

Ament’s meteroic rise in recruiting circles should continue at Tennessee, where he joins one of the most experienced head coaches in college basketball. There’s an obvious Kevin Durant parallel, which Ament points to. We shouldn’t saddle him with that level of expectation, but it was clearly a motivating factor for the 18-year-old. He has seen what Barnes can do with superhuman wings.

Vols fans should be elated with Ament’s arrival and eager to see what this new-look Tennessee team can accomplish, even if the core won’t be around for long.