29. Tyreke Key | 6-3 guard | senior | Transferred from Indiana State to Tennessee
The Scout: Key missed this entire season at Indiana State following shoulder surgery, but he is a multi-time first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference player who is about as terrific a scorer as you’ll find at that level. He’s very polished and poised, a ground-bound player for the most part who gets by with terrific footwork and strength to bump guys off their spot. Indiana State back under Greg Lansing would even use him as a pseudo-post-up/mid-post option where he could use those drop steps and spin moves to score. Plus, prior to the shoulder injury he could really step away and knock down shots. That percentage took a bit of a dive in his senior season in 2021, but the hope is that he can get back to the level he was at previously, where there were few more efficient high-volume scorers at the high mid-major level. There are some questions here with him returning from injury, which is why he falls below guys like Reeves and Carter from the Missouri Valley. But at his best, he’s very much in their group and maybe even better.
The Fit: Key goes to a spot where the coach likes a good post-up, and that’s where he thrives. Rick Barnes is usually feeding a bigger player like Grant Williams, but he’d be smart to invert the floor with Key. The question marks here are whether Key can find his jump shot again — he shot 41 percent from 3 during his sophomore and junior seasons — and whether he’s athletic enough to hang in the SEC. His skillset should diversify Tennessee’s offense. The Vols had speed and shooting on the perimeter last season but didn’t really have an isolation scorer like him who could work in the mid-range.
I think the "haters" suspect that he'll be a solid addition. They wanted more than solid out of the portal, and I'm fine with that criticism. Now, when the dust settles, and Key is perhaps one of the least-heralded members of the signing class, then I think everyone is happy. If he ends up being our headliner, that's a problem unless he grossly outperforms expectations.Regardless what the haters say, I think Key will be a solid addition.
I think the "haters" suspect that he'll be a solid addition. They wanted more than solid out of the portal, and I'm fine with that criticism. Now, when the dust settles, and Key is perhaps one of the least-heralded members of the signing class, then I think everyone is happy. If he ends up being our headliner, that's a problem unless he grossly outperforms expectations.
So no momentum with Hunter at the moment?Yeah, I think the “hater” commentary has been a bit overblown. I don’t see many “haters” on this forum other than the stands trolls we all know about. I think the concern is primarily that BTO seems to believe our portal haul as of today will be Key/Likekele. Considering the immense amount of talent in the portal this off-season, I think it’s fair for people to be disappointed if that’s the best we can do and don’t pull someone with a higher ceiling.
Now, if we land Phillips that offsets the sting a bit. But, there is just so much talent in the portal and you’d hope we could parlay the season we just had into something a bit better. We can revisit though once the dust settles.
I think the "haters" suspect that he'll be a solid addition. They wanted more than solid out of the portal, and I'm fine with that criticism. Now, when the dust settles, and Key is perhaps one of the least-heralded members of the signing class, then I think everyone is happy. If he ends up being our headliner, that's a problem unless he grossly outperforms expectations.
That's fine, but I can appreciate the idea of discussing the here and now. It isn't as if we simply missed on our first or second option. It would be different if we missed on one kid, and the gloom and doomers came out in full force with guns a blazin', but we went the entire fall period and missed on our first 10 options. And then when the transfer portal opened up, we missed on several primary options there, too. And that is coming off a tremendous season and an abundance of available minutes, especially at PG. If we wait until fall to discuss it, good or bad, the basketball forum would be quite boring in spring and summer.One of the bigger problems is that "haters" and "Eeyores", which are much more prevalent, often share the same talking points. Many of us just grow weary of prognostications of doom before the facts are in. Maybe after the first week of fall practice would be a good time to report on indicated success and failure based on some court time with the entire haul of additions. Hiding behind BVS status has little value add. I suspect that many of the middle ground and positive leaning fans simply look at the creativity Coach has demonstrated in adding folks like Santi and ZZZ and are holding on to the hope there is more to come.
That's fine, but I can appreciate the idea of discussing the here and now. It isn't as if we simply missed on our first or second option. It would be different if we missed on one kid, and the gloom and doomers came out in full force with guns a blazin', but we went the entire fall period and missed on our first 10 options. And then when the transfer portal opened up, we missed on several primary options there, too. And that is coming off a tremendous season and an abundance of available minutes, especially at PG. If we wait until fall to discuss it, good or bad, the basketball forum would be quite boring in spring and summer.