Strange: Prince of a player: He's mismatch about to occur

J.P. Prince grabs a loose ball and flips it ahead for Tyler Smith to run down on the break and slam.

But instead of scoring himself, Smith pulls up and lobs the ball off the backboard and watches as Prince finishes with a running tomahawk dunk.

In February, that play makes SportsCenter. Nice chemistry. Too bad those guys didn't end up playing for Tennessee.

Oh, wait. They will be.

The former wandering Mr. Basketballs who will be reunited next season at Tennessee are summer teammates in the Pilot Rocky Top League.

"It's been a wild ride for both of us since we got out of high school,'' Prince observed.

"We both went different directions and saw different parts of the country. We're both from Tennessee. It's good to be back home.''

When Prince transferred from Arizona to UT in January, he had no earthly idea his former AAU teammate and fellow 2005 Mr. Basketball - Prince represented Class 3A, Smith 2A - - would ever join him.

Smith, who earned All Big Ten freshman honors at Iowa last year, enrolled at UT this month. His eligibility for 2007-08 depends on winning a hardship appeal with the NCAA.

Prince becomes eligible for the second semester. He is looking more and more like a timely addition to a team that must replace Dane Bradshaw's make-everybody-else-better mentality.

As a 6-foot-6, 180-pound point guard out of White Station High School in Memphis, Prince showed little if any interest in UT. The lights were brighter at perennial power Arizona.

Now, as a 6-foot-8, 210-pound multi-position possibility, he can't wait to get in the mix with a team that returns everyone but Bradshaw and is picked to open the season in the top 10.

"He's unbelievable,'' said UT senior JaJuan Smith. "He can play anywhere from one to four and he changes the game with his length.

"You can't make a normal pass around him.''

Prince's wingspan has been reported at 83 inches. In that regard, he's reminiscent of his cousin, Tayshaun Prince of the Detroit Pistons.

Length is also an asset for a guy with a point-guard mindset regardless of what position he's actually playing.

"His length and height makes him able to look over the defense and find open guys,'' said Chris Lofton.

Smith and Lofton, UT's favorite open guys, like what they've seen of Prince on the practice floor. He worked with the scout team after his mid-season arrival.

His unselfishness, versatile skills and the 20-25 pounds he's added in the weight room make it seem almost laughable now that coach Bruce Pearl initially equivocated on whether to accept Prince back in January.

"Here's the deal,'' said Pearl. "The questions were, is he tough enough, can he shoot it well enough and will he defend off the ball?

"The book is not out yet but I think in a lot of ways he's answered some of those questions with his work ethic.''

His outside shot can still stand some polish. It's improving, he says. His basketball IQ and ability to get to the rim are already solid.

Bottom line, he's a mismatch waiting to happen.

"I've grown two inches in the last two years coming out of high school,'' Prince said. "I'm still only 19. Maybe I'm done growing, maybe I'm not. We don't know.

"But I'm still getting adjusted to my own body.''

Seeing that body in a Tennessee uniform next winter should be a pleasant adjustment for Vol fans.

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276 or strange2@knews.com.