The Tennessee basketball team entered the transfer portal for the second time on Thursday morning, with Ohio State center Felix Okpara committing to the Vols, less than a week after entering the portal.
The Vols currently have four scholarships remaining to fill out their roster for the 2023-24 season. Tennessee will likely fill one or two spots with project prep players, but that still leaves a few spots open for Rick Barnes and his staff to use in the transfer portal.
Who is the name you should know most about Tennessee?
Charlotte transfer Igor Milicic has visited Nebraska, Tennessee and Baylor since entering the portal and is getting closer to a decision.
The 6-foot-10, 225-pound stretcher has one year of eligibility remaining after playing his freshman season at the University of Virginia and the next two seasons at the University of Charlotte. As a junior at Charlotte, Milicic averaged 12.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.
The versatile forward also plays as a defender and can do everything on the offensive side of the court. He's the best perimeter shooter, making 56 3-pointers last season for a 37.6 percent success rate.
After all the visits, Milicic is probably close to making a decision. For the Croatian native, Tennessee is in a good spot as he is.
Another player who has visited Tennessee Basketball but has not yet made a decision is Belmont's Cade Tyson. Tyson, the best shooter in the transfer portal, shot 47 percent from 3-point range as a sophomore for the Bruins and added 16.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
The Monroe, North Carolina native visited Tennessee the other weekend and North Carolina this past weekend. North Carolina is Tyson's dream school and it feels like the Vols are struggling here. However, the fact that Tyson has not yet committed to the Tar Heels is noteworthy.
How does the 6-foot-7 Tyson fit into a roster that has already added one wing transfer in Darlingston Duver to Hofstra and could add another wing in Milicic? Tyson's potential The fit is interesting.
More from RTI: How Ohio State transfer Felix Okpara compares to Jonas Aidoo and Tobe Awaka
A new name for Tennessee basketball entered the transfer portal on Wednesday afternoon: North Florida's Chaz Lanier. Arguably the best scorer in the portal, Lanier averaged 19.7 points on 51 percent from the field and 44 percent from 3-point range a season ago.
The 6-foot-4 shooting guard had 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game last season and would be a great addition to the Vols' backcourt alongside Zakai Zeigler.
For graduate transfer students with only one year of eligibility left, there are some interesting and moving pieces to choose from. He is currently going through the NBA draft process, and while there was originally no deadline for graduate transfers to enter the portal, that changed earlier this week, requiring him to enter the transfer portal by the May 1st deadline. .
Lanier didn't jump into the portal until after the rule change, which seems to indicate he won't make any decisions right away as he continues the draft process. College players have until May 29th to remove their names from the NBA Draft while maintaining their college eligibility.
Another notable thing about Lanier is that he reportedly entered the portal with a “no contact tag.” This means that even though he is in the transfer portal, no team is currently allowed to have contact with him. That could bode well for Tennessee. Lanier is from Nashville and played prep basketball at Ensworth School.
Lanier has good relationships with former Tennessee guards Jordan and Josh Bourne. This relationship works in favor of the Vols as they look to pursue the elite transfer guard.
No contact tag means nothing. If he decides to withdraw from the NBA Draft, he could decide to remove the tag and go through the normal recruiting process.
Another team to keep an eye on for Lanier is Maryland. Lanier has a relationship with fellow Tennessee native Jacobi Gillespie, who is transferring to Maryland from Belmont.
Milicic, Tyson and Lanier are currently the top Tennessee basketball players to watch in the transfer portal.
However, the Vols have also reportedly contacted Minnesota's Elijah Hawkins since entering the transfer portal earlier this week. Hawkins, a 5-foot-11 point guard, averaged 9.5 points and 7.5 assists per game as a junior last season.
It seems unlikely that Hawkins will land in Tennessee. That's because he's a point guard, and the Vols already have Zakai Zeigler, one of the top point guards in the country.