Trae Golden signed on with the Tennessee men’s basketball Class of 2010 Tuesday morning, giving the Vols the quality point guard they needed.
In an unexpected move, the New York Daily News has cited multiple sources saying that forward Jayvaughn Pinkston, from Bishop Loughlin High School in Brooklyn, N.Y., will sign with the Vols today.
The 6-foot-1 Golden is ranked No. 55 in the nation in the Rivals.com 150. He joins 6-6 shooting guard Jordan McRae, from Liberty County, Ga., who signed last Thursday.
“This was the best situation for me and my family,’’ said Golden, conducting an interview on The Sports Page radio show minutes after his signing ceremony at McEachern High School in Powder Springs, Ga. “Tennessee was my leader, and was always at the top.’’
Pinkston, 6-6 and 235 pounds, is rated as the No. 67 player on the Rivals 150. He also has listed Connecticut, Marquette, St. John’s and Villanova among the schools he’s considering.
Golden and McRae played AAU basketball together with the Atlanta Celtics.
“It’s definitely a great thing to be coming to school with someone you know and are great friends with,’’ Golden said. “Jordan plays with great passion; he’s very athletic, and very strong.’’
Golden’s coach at McEachern High School, Mike Thompson, said Golden brings plenty to the Vols, too.
“Not only can Trae handle the break and get the ball to the right people, but he can score both inside and outside,’’ Thompson said. “He’ll come in physically ready to play.’’
The Vols have as many as five scholarships to offer in the Class of 2010, though it is believed UT will only sign four.
The Vols also are hoping that Tobias Harris, the No. 5 player in the country out of Dix Hills, N.Y., picks UT.
Harris, a 6-8 forward in the mold of current UT player Tyler Smith, is believed to have narrowed his choices to the Vols and Syracuse.
Harris sent a text message to the News Sentinel on Tuesday confirming the Vols are still in the running. Harris is expected to sign today and announce his decision Thursday.
Vanderbilt 93, Tennessee 79, Feb. 9…
Signing day celebration at Neyland…
Notre Dame beats Tennessee 72-44…
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 54
volfan53 writes:
Way to go CBP. Go Vols.
Voltose writes:
excellent. a pickup of Harris would put us well on our way to a recruiting class that could really help us rebound after all of our departures next year.
tonyvick#213307 writes:
very good!
OrangeCrush writes:
Finally some great news, welcome aboard.
smokyredbone writes:
When does Harris announce?
DownTheField writes:
Welcome Trae! I can hear it now, "Another trey from Trae!"
licknpromise777#651578 writes:
Good pick up; Another pure shooting guard but we need a beefy forward in this class..Harris is a long shot but playing at UT would be just as good an opportunity as any other school he's looking at..If we loose Harris to Calipari Iam going to have a cow((or a kitten))
jasonn1970 writes:
Is tonight's game on tv?
Rockygrass writes:
We may have lost Golden Tate, but we got Trae! Yes, bball game on at 6pm CST on FSN.
sampears writes:
I dont know much about him but we NEED good gaurd play BAD. A big man would be nice too...Im just sayin....
VolunteerLifer writes:
Welcome aboard, Trae. And Mr. Harris, you would sure look good in a Tennessee uniform.
spvol writes:
Now maybe Bert can drop his "Money!" and just scream "Golden!". He's a bad broadcaster.
bigorange61 writes:
It's on Sports South network.
It's on ESPN360 also, but will be blacked out in certain areas.
bigorange61 writes:
Sorry Jason, I guess it's actually Fox Sports. Unless it's all the same. It's FSN where I am at.
537081 writes:
Way to go Bruce keep up the good work
pupvol writes:
I think Ellis was from Marietta
Ironcity writes:
Dale was from Marietta High which is in the same conference as Goldens high school.
kjcross35 writes:
Looks like we also picked up another recruit as well! No. 7 PF according to Scout.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/hig...
mempuss writes:
^^^^nice! needed pickup!
dvols writes:
..." what up Trae "...
Chris4Vols22 writes:
Why doesn't anyone like the broadcasters? Mike Kessling and the other guy? I think they're good.
VOLFORLIFE writes:
BOB Kessling.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
IMHO, Kesling is marginally better broadcasting basketball than football, which isn't saying a whole lot. I kinda like Bert although he can be a little corny at times. He knows what is going on and can explain it fairly well. He is an unabashed homer, but that's fine with me, too.
CoverOrange writes:
And he screams "money" like a little girl. LOL
But your right that he is pretty good at analysis.
TooLegit2Quit writes:
Finally put up the news on Pinkston. Good stuff. I think we definitely have a great shot at picking up Harris. The word is that both Pinkston and Harris communicate regularly and find the option of playing together very attractive.
Harris signs Wednesday and announces Thursday.
If we are able to pick up Harris then I think we end up with the Number 2 class behind Memphis.
MiserableFloridaVol writes:
Tennessee is on fire tonight!!! Hopson is sick.
chrisw2967 writes:
Hopson is making it rain
GerryOP writes:
Wow! Impressive! Don't you love it when a plan comes together?
In Bruce We Trust...
MiserableFloridaVol writes:
UNC Asheville doesn't have a field goal with 5:30 to go in the first half!
MiserableFloridaVol writes:
49-6 with 5 to go!
pupvol writes:
VOLS look like the Globetrotters tonight
VolFanNC writes:
66 to 14 at halftime...never saw this before with UT BBall game.
VolFanNC writes:
Ok...98 to 31...why does he still have Tyler Smith in the game....no reason for this. put in the scrubs...
AceVentura writes:
Building chemistry. Its all good nobody got hurt.
Major_Magilicutty writes:
No scrubs on this team! Vols looked phenomenal tonight. Gotta get live action to warm these guys up. I thought Pearl's substitutions were fine.
PoochPuntOn3rdDown writes:
Where's MorrisDowner to somehow make this seem like a bad series of developments?
Go BasketVols! Always, Forever, Gorgeous Orange to the Core!
TopTenn writes:
Pinkston will sign with Vols tomorrow. It's good to be a Tennessee Vol.
golfballs03 writes:
Pinkston? That's great!! Now let's land Tobias Harris.
PoochPuntOn3rdDown writes:
This team is going to be scary, wicked good!
britt writes:
OMG largest lead of 83!!! BBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCEEEEEEEEEEE
Bigger_Al writes:
What's the over/under (in minutes) on idiot posters using the Morristown alias posing anti-Vol comments on this news?
Chris4Vols22 writes:
I can't wait for MorristownWILDCAT and A_VOICE_OF_SLEAZIN to say that UT sucked somehow against UNC Ashville...
Bigger_Al writes:
Come on down, Tobias! You'd do great playing in our arena in front of our great fans for our great coach!
MiserableFloridaVol writes:
How is there no mention of tonight's game on this website? Seriously, that is terrible stuff. What a huge win tonight for this team. We play like that the rest of the year and we will be tough to beat!
Volfan615 writes:
Well ladies and gentlemen Tobias Harris made a surprise visit to UT tonight for the game.....Does this mean its a done deal???
bippy58 writes:
On paper this looked like a championship team and it appears they are taking it to the court. They have the maturity and leadership it takes to get there and they play a schedule that will make them battle tested. Coach Pearl seems to find answers for the inequties of the previous season. Has he found the answer to tiring down the stretch? I say yes.
TopTenn writes:
Wow, what a 2010 class of Pinkston, Harris, Golden, and McRae.
King30 writes:
No tv for the opening rounds of the Paradise Jam this weekend?
Only Monday's consolation and championship games are televised??
That su x.
UT_LAW_2011 writes:
from Bluegrass State Basketball
Tobias wrapped up his Georgia Tech visit early today and then made his way to Knoxville, Tennessee. He watched Tennessee dismantle UNC-Asheville by a score of 124-49.
"I just felt like watching them play and it was only two hours from Georgia Tech," the big man explained.
Harris, who has not returned home yet, says he still plans to sit down with his family and make his college decision. He shot down rumors that he had already committed to the Volunteers or that he was ready to commit.
"I was in Knoxville, but I am not committed to Tennessee. I still have to talk everything with my family."
I told him that rumors were circulating that he had chosen Tennessee and he simply stated, "No, that is not true."
He still plans to make his announcement Thursday at 5:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
"No favorite yet," he said. "I'm still taking a final look at all the schools."
I asked him to tell me what stands out to him about each school on his final list:
- Syracuse: "The style of play and their facilities"
- Kentucky: "The fans and the atmosphere"
- Tennessee: "The passion of the coaches"
- Louisville: "The individual instruction and their work ethic"
- West Virginia: "Coach Huggins getting the best out of his guys"
- Maryland: "The campus and school itself"
- Georgia Tech: "The city of Atlanta and the school's academics"
Now word is that it's just us and Syracuse. The reality is that as a Long Island kid, the local tug of Syracuse is gonna be pretty strong. That said the signing of Pinkson from Brooklyn is huge. The two of them are friendly and could co-exist together down here if Harris does come down and if Harris doesn't we still have a quality big man coming down.
Saw CBP yesterday driving on the strip on his cell phone. This was probably what he was working on.
Gotta love Bruce. He is everything you want in a Head Coach.
UT_LAW_2011 writes:
This is from a reporter who actually talked to them. I am quoting that reporter. Modern journalism being what it is, who knows. I would like you to be right. Tobias Harris is the player I want down here. But since you are offering no specifics whatsoever towards you being right, I have no trust in your assessment of the situation. "Too Much Back Story"? Is that the backstory you came up with while you were high on crystal meth last night? How bout you enlighten us?
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