Tenn Truth
Fansided

Tennessee Basketball: Jordan Bone adds to the list of Vols heading to the 2019 NBA Draft

By Colton Pickard

COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 24: Head coach Rick Barnes of the Tennessee Volunteers speaks with Jordan Bone #0 after a play against the Iowa Hawkeyes during their game in the Second Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 24, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 24: Head coach Rick Barnes of the Tennessee Volunteers speaks with Jordan Bone #0 after a play against the Iowa Hawkeyes during their game in the Second Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 24, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Wednesday morning Tennessee guard Jordan Bone announced he would be joining some of his teammates at this year’s NBA Draft.

Bone told 247 Sports he is ready to move on to the NBA. “I feel like over these past three years that I have put myself in a good position to test the waters. I’m a junior now, so they have the rule where you can test the waters and come back if need be, but honestly, I feel like I have proven myself to be one of the better point guards in the country.”

Bone is the best point guard in the SEC and one of the top point guards going into this draft. He also possesses a lot of experience that some of the younger guys don’t have. Bone’s performance in the past couple seasons has been one of the biggest reasons the Vols turned into a contender this season. 247 Sports analyst Jerry Meyer even went as far to say he could “hang with a guy like Westbrook.”

Bone averaged 13.5 points, 5.8 assists, and 3.2 rebounds as he helped lead the Vols to the Sweet 16. Bone will be joining his senior leaders Admiral Schofield and Kyle Alexander, who both have first-round projections. Grant Williams also currently has a first-round projection and Bone will likely be right there with them.

Bone’s decision isn’t necessarily final if you are still holding onto hope that he returns. The NCAA has a rule that states a prospect can enter the draft process, but can return to his school if he decides not to enter the draft. We saw this last year with Schofield, and we could see it again this year with Bone and Williams. Although, that seems unlikely at least with Bone as he posted a video to Twitter talking about his transition from Tennessee to the NBA.

https://twitter.com/JordanBone23/status/1113475388011945984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1113475388011945984&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.saturdaydownsouth.com%2Ftennessee-football%2Fjordan-bone-declares-nba-draft-2019%2F

If his final decision is to leave the Tennessee program, it’s going to be a big hit for the Vols next season. They could potentially lose four of their five starters from this past season setting them back from a possible deep run in the NCAA tournament next season. Everyone is aware of Grant Williams’ situation and is hoping he returns for next season but regardless of what Bone or Grant do I think I can say this for most of Vol Nation we are thankful for what they have done here at Tennessee and wish them luck at the next level.

Home/Tennessee Volunteers