Rick Barnes adds another playmaker to the backcourt

Tennessee basketball announced the signing of point guard Troy Henderson on Wednesday, officially adding him to the recruiting class nearly one month after he committed to Tennessee.

“Our staff is excited for Troy and his family to join the Tennessee Basketball program,” Rick Barnes said about Henderson. “He is a pass-first point guard with a great deal of toughness, both physically and mentally. Troy can really facilitate and is a three-level scorer with range on his jumper.

“He possesses a lot of the leadership qualities we look for in a point guard, which will help him at this level. Troy comes from a winning tradition in both high school and AAU ball and has received excellent coaching throughout his life.”

Henderson isn’t the highest-ranked player the Vols have added in recent years, but he fits the mold of a Rick Barnes point guard. He ranks as the No. 26 overall point guard in the country and the No. 12 player out of Virginia.

Henderson initially committed to Fordham but was released from his Letter of Intent after head coach Keith Urgo was fired.

Other Atlantic 10 programs reached out to Henderson when he reopened his recruitment, but Barnes and the Vols made a big impact on Henderson, and the Vols have added him to the class.

arnes and the Vols have to replace its backcourt after losing several key players to graduation. Henderson could be a big part of the backcourt rebuild as the Vols look to remain in the national championship contender conversation.

“Tennessee is getting a dog,” Henderson said. “They’re getting a point guard that can lead, that can guard. They’re getting a point guard that can get my teammates involved and a point guard that can score on his own. I can do it all. They’re getting a point guard that’s a coach on the floor, I’m going to lead the team and I’m going to win.”

Henderson hopes to replace Zakai Zeigler as the Vols’ point guard this year. Those are big shoes to fill, but he has been studying Zeigler’s game and hopes to bring the same energy and effort to the court.

“He’s been a big brother to me, and he doesn’t even know it,” Henderson said about Zeigler. “I’ve been studying him and the way he competes. It seems like he goes 100% every possession. That’s what makes him special. I’m trying to learn from him, and hopefully I get to get on campus again and ask him a lot of questions, because I got a lot to ask.

“We got similar games. We’re both small guards. We’re both dogs on the floor. We’re both leaders, and we both can put the ball in the hoop.” Henderson is the third member of the 2025 recruiting class, as Barnes and the Vols look to continue adding players to their roster and rebuilding for another Elite Eight or possibly even a Final Four run in 2026.