2027 4-star guard Chase Lumpkin on Tennessee basketball: 'I like the way they play'

Tennessee basketball has Chase Lumpkin’s attention. More specifically, it’s what a pair of Vols did last season that caught the eye of the four-star guard in the 2027 recruiting class.

“They’re good at developing players,” Lumpkin told On3’s Jamie Shaw while discussing the Vols. “You see Nate Ament this year, they did really well with him. They had the guard, (Ja’Kobi) Gillespie, too. I like the way they play.”

Lumpkin, listed at 6-foot-4, 180 pounds, is the No. 44 overall player in the 2027 class, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking. He’s the No. 9 shooting guard in the country and the No. 6 overall player in the state of Georgia, out of McEachern High School in Powder Springs.

According to Shaw, Lumpkin has averaged 26.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 2.7 steals during EYBL play. He told Shaw he’s currently being recruited by Tennessee, Alabama, Oregon and Florida State.

“I play aggressively,” Lumpkin said. “I’m just a player who is doing whatever it takes for my team to win. I get others involved, score the ball, whatever it takes. 

“My playmaking is really showing. During my high school season, I was more of a scoring role, but I have great guys around me this summer. I watch a lot of Cade Cunningham, Shai Gilgeous (Alexander), and a lot of Jayson Tatum.”

Vols have signed four players in 2026 recruiting class

Tennessee’s 2026 recruiting class is currently includes four signees and is ranked No. 22 nationally and No. 6 in the SEC with a class score of 92.75.

In the fall the Vols signed four-star small forward Ralph Scott, three-star shooting guard Manny Green and three-star point guard Marquis Clark. Four-star small forward Chris Washington Jr., the highest ranked of the group, signed on April 16.

Washington is the No. 53 overall player in the class, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, and is the No. 18 small forward nationally. Scott is ranked No. 71 overall and No. 25 at small forward, Green is No. 142 overall and No. 36 at shooting guard and Clark is No. 222 overall and No. 36 at point guard. 

Tennessee overhauled 2026-27 roster in NCAA Transfer Portal

Tennessee flipped its roster for next season by doing most of its work in the NCAA Transfer Portal, adding Juke Harris (Wake Forest), Tyler Lundblade (Belmont), Dai Dai Ames (Cal) and Terrence Hill Jr. (VCU) and forwards Miles Rubin (Loyola Chicago), Jalen Haralson (Notre Dame) and Braedan Lue (Kennesaw State).

Rick Barnes was forced to rebuild his roster after losing six players to the transfer portal — J.P. Estrella (Michigan), Cade Phillips (Texas A&M), Jaylen Carey (Missouri), Bishop Boswell (Maryland), Amari Evans (Texas) and Clarence Massamba (UC Davis) — and 11 players in total.

Ethan Burg returned home to Israel and the Vols lost four seniors in Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Felix Okpara, Amaree Abram and Grant Hurst.