Coach Rick Barnes Addresses The Media
photo by UT Athletics
Tennessee men's basketball took center stage at the SEC Tipoff '25 event in Birmingham Tuesday, with head coach Rick Barnes and the senior guard duo of Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack representing the Vols.
The UT trio spent the morning at the Grand Bohemian Hotel Mountain Brook visiting with media members from around the country to preview the upcoming 2024-25 campaign, Barnes' 10th on Rocky Top.
"I could stand here all day and talk about Zakai and what he's meant to our program," Barnes said. "He's one of the most unselfish human beings I've ever been around in my life. There's not a coach in the country that would not want to coach him and be around him every day. He's one of the most consistent people I've ever been around. I never worry about him coming to practice or what kind of effort or attitude he's going to bring. I don't care if it's in June, July or August. Whatever it is, he's going to bring his maximum effort. He's a guy who never complains and hates missing practice. If it were up to him, he'd play 40 minutes a night and would take every rep in practice. He's made as much of an impact on our program as any program I've ever been at.
"Anything he does will be to help his teammates and our program grow to be the best it can be. He is such a great individual person, one of the greatest teammates ever and a guy who truly wants to win at the highest level."
"I've never think Jahmai really gets the recognition he deserves for defense," Barnes said. "I think most people look at blocked shots and steals and think that's what makes good defensive players. Obviously, it's a part of it, but it's not the major thing. What Jahmai does guarding the ball and what he does to bring our defense together, along with Zakai, is incredible. Those two guys both have great pride in wanting to be defensive players. They want to do that. They both grew up trying to fight their way through this game and get where they are. I think that Jahmai is a great example of a guy that when we talk about being a star in your role, he understands that. He embraces it. I'm not sure there's a better defensive player in terms of what he does to impact the game. It's special."