Vols land 2019 hoops commitment

Tennessee picked up its first commitment in the 2019 Class, as Buffalo, N.Y. prospect Davonte Gaines announced the Vols as his college destination on Saturday.

Gaines (6-foot-6, 190 pounds) attended the Vols’ Elite Camp earlier this month and apparently both Tennessee and Gaines came away impressed with what each saw.

Gaines is a versatile wing who picked the Vols early in the process. A long, athletic player, Gaines is a rangy athlete who excels as a slasher and has a developing perimeter game that suggests he may become a dangerous shooter in time.

Gaines had early offers from Rhode Island and Canisius among other but picked the Vols before his recruitment really picked up.

The numbers could certainly (and probably will) fluctuate this far out but as things stand now Tennessee has two sots in the 2019 class, slots that are currently occupied by juniors Kyle Alexander and Admiral Schofield. The lone two players remaining from Rick Barnes’ initial signing class in Knoxville.

At first glance, pulling a kid from Buffalo, N.Y. seems a bit unusual but both Tennessee associate head coach Rob Lanier and assistant Des Oliver are Buffalo natives, so there are some ties here that obviously came into play.