Kennedy Chandler has continued Tennessee's pipeline into the NBA, becoming the sixth Volunteers player selected in the past four drafts.
The 6-foot, 171-pound point guard from Memphis had widely been projected as a late first-round selection but wound up going in the second round late Thursday night to the San Antonio Spurs as the 38th overall pick. Several minutes after the selection, ESPN reported that the Memphis Grizzlies had acquired Chandler for a future second-round pick and cash.
"I expected to go first round," Chandler told ABC24 Memphis. "I did great in all my workouts. The only feedback was my size. I can't grow extra inches. It's not my fault about my size."
Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman told the Memphis Commercial Appeal, "We were shocked that Kennedy slipped to where he was."
Chandler played just one season for the Vols but had quite the impact, averaging a team-high 13.9 points per contest and scoring in double figures each of his last 11 games. He also had 161 assists against 85 turnovers, and his 74 steals ranked second in the Southeastern Conference.
Tennessee racked up a 27-8 record this past season that included a 14-4 league mark and the program's first SEC tournament title since 1979. Chandler was named the SEC tourney's most outstanding player.
His one weakness was free-throw shooting, as he connected on just 60.6% of his attempts.
The Vols didn't have any players selected in the three drafts from 2016-18 but have made up for it since with Grant Williams (Boston), Admiral Schofield (Philadelphia) and Jordan Bone (New Orleans) getting picked in 2019, and with Keon Johnson (New York) and Jaden Springer (Philadelphia) getting tabbed last year.
Two former Tennessee players have suited up for the Grizzlies - Jarnell Stokes in 2014-15 and Yves Pons this past season.
Rogers returning
Tennessee softball pitcher Ashley Rogers had not announced her intentions for next season until Friday afternoon, when she posted "One more ride in the Orange & White" on Twitter.
The former Meigs County standout battled injuries this past spring but still managed to post a 12-6 record and a 2.01 earned run average. The Lady Vols went 41-18 and hosted a Knoxville Regional in the NCAA tournament for a 17th straight season.
Rogers led the SEC in 2021 with a 1.32 ERA.
Dollander honored
Tennessee sophomore pitcher Chase Dollander was named Friday afternoon as a D1 Baseball first-team All-American, securing his fifth such postseason honor.
Dollander joins an exclusive group of Vols to earn first-team recognition from five or more outlets - Todd Helton (1995), Jeff Pickler (1998), Chris Burke (2001) and Luke Hochevar (2005).
The transfer from Georgia Southern became the SEC pitcher of the year during his first season in Knoxville, compiling a 10-0 record and a league-leading 2.39 ERA. Dollander held opponents to a .175 batting average.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DavidSPaschall.