Tennessee’s offseason transformation begins long before the first made jump shot or the first grueling conditioning drill.
Inside Pratt Pavilion, Rick Barnes and his staff are tasked with blending transfers, freshmen and returning veterans into a team capable of competing for championships. The challenge extends well beyond teaching offensive sets or defensive rotations. It starts with building trust, establishing accountability and creating a shared standard among players who arrived in Knoxville from vastly different basketball backgrounds.
That process, according to Tennessee sports performance director Garrett Medenwald, begins with understanding the individual before developing the athlete.
Medenwald said his first priority is understanding each player’s goals, mindset, and personality before constructing a customized development plan.
“You are what you do every day,” Medenwald said.
The individualized approach may differ from player to player, but the standard does not.
That consistency helps explain why Tennessee has maintained its identity despite routinely replacing significant portions of its roster.
Transfer point guard Terrence Hill Jr. said one of the biggest surprises since arriving in Knoxville has been how quickly the Volunteers have developed chemistry.
“We have a lot of different guys that can do a lot of different things,” Hill said. “But then just our chemistry over a short period of time has really surprised me. Just everybody willing to buy into what coach is saying, all the coaches saying, just very impressive to me.”
That buy-in doesn’t happen overnight.
Instead, Barnes has spent years building a system where veteran players help newcomers understand not only what Tennessee expects, but why those expectations exist.
Perhaps no example illustrated that better than Grant Hurst.
When Tennessee’s 2025-26 season ended in the Elite Eight, Barnes made a point to recognize the veteran walk-on for helping maintain the culture inside the Volunteers’ locker room. Hurst’s value extended well beyond his playing time, underscoring how leadership inside the program is measured by influence as much as production.
Now, that responsibility appears to be passing to another player.
Throughout summer workouts, both Barnes and Medenwald have pointed to forward DeWayne Brown II as one of Tennessee’s emerging leaders. Brown’s name has surfaced repeatedly during player interviews as teammates describe the voices helping guide a roster filled with transfers and freshmen through one of the most demanding periods of the offseason.
The transition extends beyond the current roster.
Each summer, former Volunteers return to Rocky Top while preparing for professional basketball or spending time around the program. Their presence offers something coaches cannot.
Proof.
Hill said conversations with former Tennessee point guards Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Zakai Zeigler helped prepare him for Barnes’ expectations before he ever stepped on the practice floor.
“They were just telling me, ‘Trust the process.’ He’s going to be on you the most because you’re the point guard,” Hill said.
Those conversations reinforce the same message newcomers hear from Barnes and his staff every day.
Medenwald summed up the philosophy simply.
“We learn through stories,” he said.
For Tennessee, those stories are everywhere.
They’re told by veterans who have already navigated Barnes’ system. They’re reinforced by former Volunteers who continue returning to campus. And eventually, today’s newcomers become the next players responsible for carrying those expectations forward.
The names on Tennessee’s roster may change from season to season.
The standard rarely does.
