Published Jun 22, 2025
Tennessee basketball six-man Jordan Gainey got NBA workout ahead of draft
circle avatar
Ryan Sylvia  •  VolReport
Assistant Managing Editor
Twitter
@RyanTSylvia

After two great years off the bench for Tennessee basketball, six-man Jordan Gainey got a chance to workout in front of an NBA team on Friday.

According to a report from Damichael Cole, the Memphis Grizzlies hosted Gainey along with a handful of other prospects for a workout.

Gainey is not currently ranked as a player inside ESPN's top 100 big board. However, Vols Chaz Lanier, Igor Milicic Jr., Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack did make the cut.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

Advertisement
info icon
Embed content not availableManage privacy settings

Gainey is coming off a terrific senior year and second season with Tennessee.

As the team's six-man and one of the best bench players in the country, he appeared in 38 games while making just one start for an injured Zeigler. In this time, Gainey averaged 11.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.

This came on 40.5% shooting from the field and 30.4% on 3-pointers.

His most memorable moment was a buzzer-beating layup after taking the ball full-court on the road to beat Illinois. The shot marked two of his game-high 23 points in the game.

His first season in Knoxville was during his junior campaign. He came off the bench in all of his 36 appearances. He averaged 6.8 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

Both of these seasons saw him play a somewhat significant role on teams that went to the Elite Eight. It also paired him up with associate head coach Justin Gainey, his father, with the Vols.

"It is different. It is a little different," Justin Gainey said about no longer coaching his son this off-season. "From a parent standpoint, I was lucky the last two years because you got to see him every day. When your kids leave the house, it is weird. It is different. When they go away for college. The first two years, I kind of got used to it. The next two years when I had a chance to see him every day, you appreciate it. Now that that's not the case, it is different. I was telling my wife that the other night. I find myself calling him every night just to check in to see what's going on. It is a little different."

Prior to his time in Knoxville, Gainey played a pair of seasons at USC Upstate. As a sophomore, he was named First-Team All-Big South and as a freshman he earned a spot on the second-team while being named Big South Freshman of the Year.

– TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM.

– ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION.

– SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOLREPORT YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

– FOLLOW VOLREPORT ON TWITTER: @TennesseeRivals, @ByNoahTaylor, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media.