Cam Carr is leaving the Tennessee Basketball program and plans to enter the NCAA Transfer Portal. The sophomore wing, who wants to redshirt this season, has been sidelined since November 17 with a ligament injury in his left thumb that required surgery.
Carr had the cast removed on his thumb last week and had been working through individual drills during practice while he was sidelined with the injury. The original timeline for return was 4-6 weeks.
No. 1 Tennessee (11-0) hosts Middle Tennessee State (9-3) on Monday night (7 Eastern Time, SEC Network) at Food City Center. The Vols are back home next Tuesday against Norfolk State in the final non-conference game of the season before SEC play starts January 4 against Arkansas.
Carr averaged 4.8 points and 1.5 rebounds in 10.3 minutes per game off the bench over the first four games of the season. He had four points and one rebound in nine minutes against Austin Peay, when he suffered the thumb injury, after scoring a career-high 13 points in 16 minutes against Montana in the 92-57 win November 13.
Tennessee entered the season shorthanded, with just 11 scholarship players on roster out of a possible 13, and the Vols have gotten even thinner over the last two months.
Sophomore center JP Estrella was lost to season-ending foot surgery in late November and Carr has been out the last four weeks.
Hofstra transfer wing Darlinstone Dubar missed he first four games of the season while dealing with a personal matter and missed the Miami game in New York on December 10 while in concussion protocol. Freshman guard Bishop Boswell also missed a game due to concussion protocol.
Carr injured his left thumb in the second half of the win over Austin Peay on November 17. The thumb bent back awkwardly as he was fouled with 7:10 left. He stayed in the game to shoot the free throws that followed, making one of two, then checked out for the rest of the game.
Tennessee is off to its best start to a season since the 1999-2000 team started 11-0. The Vols have been ranked No. 1 for the last two weeks and are four wins away from setting a new record for the best start in program history.
Four players left the program through the NCAA Transfer Portal in the spring, with forwards Jonas Aidoo and Tobe Awaka leaving, along with guards Freddie Dilione V and DJ Jefferson. Aidoo went to Arkansas, Awaka went to Arizona, Dilione landed at Penn State and Jefferson is at Longwood.
Rick Barnes and his staff added three starters out of the portal, in guard Chaz Lanier (North Florida), stretch forward Igor Milicic (Charlotte) and center Felix Okpara (Ohio State).
