This week’s NBA blockbuster trade that sent Giannis Antetokounmpko from the Milwaukee Bucks to the Miami Heat wound up including former University of Tennessee forward Nate Ament.
The Bucks received Miami’s 13th overall pick in Tuesday night’s draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, and used it on Ament, the 6-foot-10, 211-pounder from Manassas, Virginia. Ament became the highest-drafted player of the Rick Barnes era, which dates to the 2015-16 season in Knoxville, and the highest-drafted Volunteer since Marcus Haislip was also taken 13th overall by Milwaukee in 2002.
“I met with Milwaukee a couple of times,” Ament said on ESPN after being selected. “I am super excited. I’ve wanted this since I first started playing basketball with my brothers back at the park. The game means a lot to me, and it brought us closer together.”
Ament played in 35 of 37 games during his one season with the Vols, averaging 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per contest for a team that went 25-12 and advanced to the NCAA tournament’s Elite Eight.
“He’s a skilled, graceful athlete, and all he really lacks is strength,” longtime ESPN analyst Jay Bilas said on Tuesday’s draft telecast. “It’s not that he doesn’t have strength, but that’s the next thing for him to add at a higher level. He was tested. People came after him and played at him physically, because that’s where they thought they could take advantage of him, but he answered the call.
“He got fouled a lot. He stuck his nose in there and got to the free-throw line. He only shot 33% from 3-point range, but he’s got the stroke, and he’s got an excellent mid-range game and can affect the game on the defensive end. He’s a top-10 talent.”
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In other basketball news, Tennessee will play Kentucky and Vanderbilt twice again this season and will also face Missouri twice. The Tigers will have senior forward Jaylen Carey, who played for the Vols this past season.
Tennessee will host Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State and South Carolina, while the Vols will travel to Auburn, LSU, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Texas and Texas A&M.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.