Tennessee basketball is rolling along after Cam Carr left the Vols suddenly.
The sophomore guard exited the program on Dec. 23, the day of its 82-64 win against Middle Tennessee State. It was business as usual then and continues to be for the Vols and coach Rick Barnes.
“Although we hated to see Cam leave, nothing changes with us from a preparation standpoint, from a practice standpoint,” UT associate head coach Justin Gainey said Monday.
No. 1 Tennessee (12-0) has its final nonconference game against Norfolk State (9-6) on Tuesday (3 p.m. ET, SEC Network+). Carr’s decision to leave left the Vols with a maximum of nine scholarship players this season.
“We’re not worried about it at all,” Gainey said of the roster numbers. “We’re not. We feel like every guy on our roster can come in and contribute in some fashion. … We feel like all nine of those guys, could come in and perform.”
Rick Barnes sticking to practice, prep after Cam Carr left
One of Barnes’ beliefs is that the head coach must be the most consistent person in a program.
He’s setting the example after Carr departed.
“Coach don’t change,” Gainey said. “Regardless of who is here, who is not, Coach doesn’t change anything. We are going to practice just as hard if we had 12 players as we would if we only had eight guys. He figures out a way for there to not be a dip in daily expectations and the daily work we put in.”
Barnes indicated after the MTSU game that he had no idea why Carr left Tennessee because Carr didn’t present any opportunity for a discussion before he departed. He said Carr “just walked out” and the decision was “baffling, to be quite honest with you.”
The 10th-year Vols coach wasn’t surprised by Carr opting out. The Vols aren’t surprised by Barnes’ response.
“He is one-track mind,” Gainey said. “It is ‘next man up.’ It gives other guys opportunities in practice to get more reps.”
Tennessee is without forward J.P. Estrella after he underwent season-ending foot surgery in November. UT didn’t have freshman guard Bishop Boswell against MTSU, leaving the Vols with eight available scholarship players after Carr vacated the roster. Boswell remains day to day with a right shoulder injury.
Cam Carr left Tennessee, plans to transfer
Carr’s next step will be to enter the transfer portal. The timing for the sophomore entering the portal has its complications, as the window for basketball does not open until late March.
The 6-foot-6 guard Carr could pursue a medical redshirt because he has not played since Nov. 17 with a left thumb injury. He played in four games before the injury, averaging 4.8 points in 10.5 minutes per game this season.
Carr averaged 2.3 points in 18 games in his two seasons at UT. He made a key 3-pointer in Tennessee’s Sweet 16 win against Creighton last season, filling in while Santiago Vescovi was ill.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
