Lamont Paris could be on the verge of getting his first two commitments for his first University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball team.
That would be good for the new Mocs coach, who has lost another player previously committed to the program.
UTC is prepared to host 6-foot-9 forward Justin Brown and 6-foot-4 guard Jonathan Bryant Jr. on recruiting visits this weekend, both players confirmed to the Times Free Press late Wednesday evening. Brown played at Marist High School in Chicago, while Bryant played at Oakleaf High School in Orange Park, Fla.
But what was a four-player signing class recruited by former UTC coach Matt McCall and his staff has been whittled down to one – junior-college transfer Joan Duran, who prepped at Chattanooga’s Hamilton Heights Christian Academy – after 6-foot-8 forward Demarcus Mitchell from the Memphis area was released from his national letter of intent last week. Sources told the Times Free Press that Mitchell, who played at Germantown High School, had the potential to be the “best” of the class.
The versatile Duran, who’s 6-7, averaged 9.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists while shooting 53 percent from the field and 38 percent from 3-point range for Eastern Florida State, the National Junior College Athletic Association runners-up this past season.