Armani Moore admits he didn't know much about Tennessee men's basketball coach Cuonzo Martin when he saw the Vols play at the College of Charleston on Dec. 14.
"He seemed like a cool guy, and a strict guy,'' Moore said Tuesday. "I've gotten to know Coach, and I believe he can help me get to the next level.''
First things first, Martin is hoping Moore can play a role in taking the Vols to another level.
Moore, a 6-foot-5 combo guard from Mount Paran Christian School in Kennesaw, Ga., signed a letter of intent with UT on Wednesday, the first day of the spring signing period.
Moore said he'll enroll at UT in July for the second term of summer school.
"Armani has the tools to do a lot of things for us," Martin said Wednesday. "He does a good job getting to the rim, he has good size for a guard, and he has the ability to play inside and outside.
"Defensively, it's a matter of how fast he picks things up, the timing, the spacing and the ability to get steals."
Moore had a signing ceremony in front of his senior classmates at the Class A school on Wednesday.
"Armani was our focal point, he did so many things for us, and I asked him to play the point (guard) as well as center," Mount Paran Christian School coach Scott Varner said. "His immediate strength is his ability to create off the dribble, but I think he can see the floor
well.
"He's spending so much time on his perimeter jumper, because he knows that's what he has to do at the next level," Varner said. "He has a fantastic mid-range game, and he has the ability to finish at the rim.
"He shot nearly 40 percent from the 3-point line, and that was after shooting 17 percent through the first five games."
Varner said Moore averaged 22 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.9 blocks and 2.3 steals per game last season. He verbally committed to play for UT on March 20.
Martin said he first saw Moore play a year ago.
"He was guarding point guards and centers, really, positions one through five," Martin said. "He's a guy who gives a lot of effort. He was with an AAU coach that had been doing it a long time and understood the game.
"One of the things I respected most about Armani in regard to his AAU program, he had other (AAU) programs recruiting him, but he stayed true and loyal to his program and that says a lot about the type of kid he is."
Moore said one of the reasons he got involved with Atlanta's "Hoops Planet" team was his friendship with former Alabama second-team All-SEC player Tony Mitchell.
Mitchell lived across the street from Moore in Swainsboro, Ga., when the players were young, and they refer to each other as "godbrothers."
"I stayed with him, he stayed over with me,'' Moore said. "Tony told me if I had an opportunity to go SEC, I should really look at it.''
Moore, who is rated as a three-star prospect by Rivals.com, joins a completed Class of 2012 that also includes:
D'Montre Edwards, a 6-7 wing from Brevard (Fla.) Community College. Edwards averaged 14.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game last season.
Derek Reese, a 6-8 wing from Olympia High in Orlando, Fla. Reese averaged 9.5 points and 8.1 rebounds playing in Florida's largest high school classification level (Class 8A).
Jarnell Stokes, a 6-8 power forward from Southwind High in Memphis. Stokes graduated high school early and enrolled at UT in January, playing in 17 games and averaging 9.6 points and 7.4 rebounds.
The Vols also added 5-10 walk-on point guard Cory Stanton, who started his career as a scholarship player at Clemson in 2010-11 before transferring to Lipscomb last fall and UT in January.
Moore is already friends with Edwards.
"I saw D'Montre's picture, and I was like, 'I know that guy,' '' Moore said. "I messaged him on Twitter, and it turns out he used to come and run (play) pickup at Georgia State. We've stayed in touch, and we're looking forward to playing together again.''
Mike Griffith covers Tennessee men's basketball. Follow him at http://twitter.com/MikeGriffith32
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Comments » 41
kyvol98 writes:
Welcome. Be ready to get "coached up" and work hard!
MothershipChip writes:
Looking forward to Armani bringing some style to the Vols!!!!
volfan2002 writes:
Armani has skills he will be a great player for us.
mocsandvolsfan writes:
I completely forgot about Stanton! sooo potentially 3 point guard reserves next season. That should at least make for better practices at the guard. Armani should be a big plus for our system. I'd sure like to see a true center show up from somewhere.
Razor784 writes:
Another high percentage 3 point shooter, great addition, welcome aboard
asmith writes:
where does this leave chris jones?
westknoxrepub writes:
Welcome Wes Washpun V2.0, nobody else wanted him, but since everyone thinks Coach Martin (not Nartin as the headline suggests) has the greatest eye for undiscovered talent in the history of basketball, he must be able to compete with the players at Vandy, Kentucky, Florida, Arkansas, Alabama, etc. We eagerly await you to guide us to a potential NIT berth.
westknoxrepub writes:
Apparently Mr. Jones is just too talented, and won't fit in with whatever system involving average players Martin's hoping to establish here.
HopeisNotaCourseofAction writes:
Threes reign supreme! A three point shooter, 3 point-guard reserves, yet another three star rolling in.
I know, stars don't matter, Stokes is a great player, he made an immediate impact and was just a thr ... er uh never mind.
And another three - third round of NIT here we come! But hey, after a down year of not making the real tournament, that would be an improvement, getting better, going up, unlike 6-7 and 5-7 in FB the last 2 years.
VolnPickwick writes:
Who the he!! is Cuonzo Nartin?
orangesherbert writes:
I admire your consistency...you spew the same drivel here as you do on any other site you infest.
HopeisNotaCourseofAction writes:
Connom nam, he's the naim coach that recruited Arnami Noore!
mocsandvolsfan writes:
I'll be glad when basketball is here again and the trolls are not...(wishful thinking)
Ayres_Hall writes:
Gloom and Doom V2.0?
We? Ha. You need a new place to rest your old hat.
born2ride writes:
Chris Jones was a top-50 player out of high school and is a first team JUCO All American. The dude can play!
Bubba_Knows writes:
You have to look to the sky. You have to look to "Troll Logic." Or just ask Witch Doctor to explain.
Bubba_Knows writes:
That's what the LADIES say about me.
Dougb-VFL writes:
Lets Go Vols! We are looking good and I believe Cuonzo is getting some quality players that seem to have leadership potential.I am wanting to see our D create turnovers and some high flying finishes at the rim. I am thinking that this coach of ours is about to put us in championship conversations. VFL
FanNotSheep writes:
Stars have lied before. Nobody wanted Lofton and Jujuan Smith that much either and I think they did OK.
Like I always say, wait until you see them with the lights on and the game on the line before you decide whether they can play the game. Nothing anybody says will make him any better or worse than he is. It will all play out.
Bubba_Knows writes:
Stars have lied, but bones never lie. We need to get Witchy Doctor to approve each player.
Vol43 writes:
Armani, don't pay any attention to this idiot. I'm sure you've seen 'em too. Welcome aboard! Looking forward to it.
STLVOLS writes:
You are a sad individual without hope, WestKnox. Because your posts are always negative no matter what, you are either a Vol fan imposter or just a person with a negative attitude in all aspects of life.
Apparently negative issues are impacting your life that cause you to spill your ignorance on this website.
You are a bad joke!!
FanNotSheep writes:
As Johnny Majors so aptly described them: The legions of the miserable, and put another way, the nattering nabobs of negativity.
Then there are the ones like the guy who was banned from the Sports Animal radio network for a couple of blessedly peaceful years, who accept nothing less than perfection. Then you find out they are divorced, which makes perfect sense because who could live with someone when there is no hope of living up to their expectations?
Thankfully we only have to endure them for a few minutes or paragraphs of ranting. Lately, I've opted to change the station for a couple of minutes – and skip the online posts altogether. So if fewer people would bother responding to these clowns there'd be fewer posts to skip.
illinoisvolfan writes:
Welcome to the Tennessee, Armani. Can't wait to see you suited up for the Vols (sorry, just couldn't help it).
GerryOP writes:
Westie, you were wrong about Coach Martin's coaching ability (Better record than Pearl's last year), you were wrong with your predictions of our basketVols '11-'12 season (Way wrong!), and you will be proven wrong about your opinions concerning Coach Martin's ability to evaluate talent. But, keep it up lil' Westie. Whatever your negaVol mission is, perhaps the pain will go away when you stop beating your head against the wall.
wigmeister writes:
What a nasty post! You're an idiot!
HooRay_Vol writes:
yes, please try some to get rid of your stench!
volhitman writes:
The article says he's 6-5 but on ch 8's scroll this AM it listed him at 6-8. Can anyone confirm which?
westknoxrepub writes:
Based on past evidence, the lack of production from Washpun, Richardson, Yemi, and Miller. . .the fact he's never been to an NCAA tournament (with a supposed worse record than Pearl's even though Pearl had a tougher schedule his last year) Martin's ability to put this program back where Pearl had it is in serious question. He needs to recruit better players if he's going to win championships. The calibur of players he's recruiting aren't going to compete against Kentucky.
dlukinbeck writes:
you are a giant douche
asmith writes:
wrong chris jones. jones is a 4 star guard from memphis who can knock the bottom out from what i see. he had offers from ole miss and wake forest also. andy kennedy knows how to recruit, if he was after him, i know that this kid can play. martin let kevin ware go, and needs to get this kid signed to play at tennessee.
asmith writes:
quotes below from former coach steve forbes and chris jones. martin needs to get chris jones signed.
Forbes also spoke on how Jones ranks all-time in comparison to the players that he has been fortunate enough to coach.
“I’ve been very blessed to have coached some outstanding players throughout my career,” Forbes explained. “Acie Law (Texas A&M) was a NCAA First-Team All-American and an NBA Lottery Pick. Brandun Hughes (Barton County/Michigan) and Bobby Maze (Hutch/Tennessee) were First-Team JC All-Americans. Chris is definitely in that category. He has the ability and the desire to play in the NBA and it wouldn’t surprise me if he did.”
Pro basketball is one of the many things that motivates Jones.
“I want to play with the best,” Jones said. “I want to get paid to do this when I’m done with college. I need to play at the highest level possible. That’s why I workout every day at 6 a.m. It keeps me going.”
The NBA may be an attainable goal for Jones, but he has one more year of junior college and then has to sift through a plethora of schools recruiting him. Jones knows what he wants in a school.
“I’m looking for a team that fits my style of play. I’m a winner and I’m going to win at the next level. I want a team that lets me play an up-tempo game,” Jones said.
Jones will be one of the most heavily recruited junior college players in years and has plenty of options.
“Chris is getting interest from top programs all over the country,” Forbes said. “He has offers from the Big East, Big 12, SEC, ACC and Big Ten. He plans on going through the recruiting process and finding a school, a style of play and a coaching staff that best fits him to be successful as a student athlete.”
When asked who was recruiting him, Jones said, “Everyone in the country.” Enough said.
westknox is right about this one.
Basketvol writes:
nice one
Basketvol writes:
Meanwhile . . . nobody on the TENNESSEE board cares about Kentucky.
GerryOP writes:
Everyone is entitled to their opinion ... even if it is wrong. And your opinions on UT basketball have been pretty much wrong ever since Coach Zo appeared. But you're entitled...
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Welcome to UT, work hard and you'll have a chance to play early and often..GBO!!
RememberWhen writes:
were you born an idiot or did you just grow into it??? Chris Jones has NOT signed with anybody...mainly because he has another year in Juco before he's even eligible - minor point I know. Secondly, he was a top 50 guy out of HS - slightly better than 3 star I'd say. Third, he was just named a 1st team Juco All American, was POY in the best Juco conference in the country (1st fresman to do so since '97), and took his team to the national title game - all minor achievements of course. And finally, you are right on one point - 118 other D1 coaches do agree with Coach Zo - Chris Jones will NEVER play at TN....far too good. Now take your meds - your delusions may be contagious!
RememberWhen writes:
Why is Cory Stanton even mentioned in this article? He won't be at TN after this semester since Martin reneged on the scholarship he promised the kid when he came in January.
walt23tn writes:
Your kinda sad dude. Nothing else to do but go to govolsxtra up there in Stepping Stone country? Won and done may be right, and it's funny to watch you guys get all excited about players looking for attention so they can jump ship, instead of caring about the precious cats. You should talk, you just won a championship.....and again, all your boys couldn't wait to take that blue off and run out of Lexington. Oh yea....and we are the sad ones. University of Stepping Stone Wildcats. The motto: Get on tv, get drafted, and get the hell out of Lexington as soon as possible, and the fans will love you.
Basketvol writes:
Any support I showed for that team is now part of my regretful past. No streamers here. When the game ended I turned the TV off and said "good for them." I think I made up for it when I booed the guy who did a C A T S chant at the Wheelmobile in Knoxville yesterday.
Voller5 writes:
All I have to say is for the people who think CCM is not a good coach or doesn't think he will bring us back to great things you are an idiot! Ask any NCAA basketball analyst and they will tell you that he is a great coach and will have our program back without hesitation. Just a few of those guys are Jimmy Dykes and Andy Katz. Anybody heard of them?
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