Any possibility of Ament returning for 2nd year?

#379
#379
YankeeVol said:
No chit.

My point remains, put up or shut up. I've said what I''ll wager. What you got?

**also love the Alpha moniker from you people 🤣
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1) Blowhards on the internet don't impress me. I don't bet friends, much less strangers. Fun fact: the last bet I made in my life was over the Academy Awards chances of Road to Perdition in 2002. I won $50, and it turned out to be money the other person didn't have, which made me feel bad about the whole thing.
2) The fact that you're trying to move the conversation away from basketball is telling.
3) It's fine that you're wrong. It happens all the time on the internet.
4) NOBODY here has said he's likely to stay. We're talking about what's best for him and what we'd advise him to do if we were in his inner circle, which none of us are.

Signed,
Not an alpha but what people like you call a Sigma for some reason that only makes sense to right-wing podcaster pinheads
 
#380
#380
DocVol said:
So what do you do if he asks for first year NBA money? Do you pay him 6 or 7 million to stay one more year? Seems he would have to at least match what he’s going to lose by going to the league early.
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We handle it like any other player thus far. We make him the offer we feel fairly values him. If he rejects, we move on.
 
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#381
#381
GoneViral said:
1) Blowhards on the internet don't impress me. I don't bet friends, much less strangers. Fun fact: the last bet I made in my life was over the Academy Awards chances of Road to Perdition in 2002. I won $50, and it turned out to be money the other person didn't have, which made me feel bad about the whole thing.
2) The fact that you're trying to move the conversation away from basketball is telling.
3) It's fine that you're wrong. It happens all the time on the internet.
4) NOBODY here has said he's likely to stay. We're talking about what's best for him and what we'd advise him to do if we were in his inner circle, which none of us are.

Signed,
Not an alpha but what people like you call a Sigma for some reason that only makes sense to right-wing podcaster pinheads
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Lulz
 
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#382
#382
GoneViral said:
1) Blowhards on the internet don't impress me. I don't bet friends, much less strangers. Fun fact: the last bet I made in my life was over the Academy Awards chances of Road to Perdition in 2002. I won $50, and it turned out to be money the other person didn't have, which made me feel bad about the whole thing.
2) The fact that you're trying to move the conversation away from basketball is telling.
3) It's fine that you're wrong. It happens all the time on the internet.
4) NOBODY here has said he's likely to stay. We're talking about what's best for him and what we'd advise him to do if we were in his inner circle, which none of us are.

Signed,
Not an alpha but what people like you call a Sigma for some reason that only makes sense to right-wing podcaster pinheads
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BETA!!!!
 
#384
#384
Berry4Heisman14 said:
Doubt he stays. He has so much potential once he fills out his frame and he will do that quicker in the NBA
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ESPN still has him at #8 today, which surprised me a bit. They sound convinced that while he's not ready, some team will bet on the tools.

www.espn.com

2026 NBA draft big board rankings: Top 100 prospects

Here is the updated top 100 big board for the 2026 class after an exciting college season.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

"Knee and ankle injuries in February interrupted Ament's strong second half, but he returned to contribute to Tennessee's surprise Elite Eight run. Although he often left scouts wanting more this season, his skill level and fluidity at his size and flashes of shotmaking fit a valuable archetype and supply a strong developmental base in the long run.

It's likely Ament won't be ready to contribute to a winning team as a rookie, but players in his mold are hard to find and tend to be valuable in an NBA driven by perimeter size and skill. Scouts are split on the likelihood of him reaching his ceiling, as he's not an explosive athlete and has had some challenging moments this season. His best flashes in what was a suboptimal team context at Tennessee have kept him in the lottery mix."

They've got Gillespie at #75. I suspect that he can work his way into the second round conversation with a good draft season.
 
#388
#388
GoneViral said:
ESPN still has him at #8 today, which surprised me a bit. They sound convinced that while he's not ready, some team will bet on the tools.

www.espn.com

2026 NBA draft big board rankings: Top 100 prospects

Here is the updated top 100 big board for the 2026 class after an exciting college season.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

"Knee and ankle injuries in February interrupted Ament's strong second half, but he returned to contribute to Tennessee's surprise Elite Eight run. Although he often left scouts wanting more this season, his skill level and fluidity at his size and flashes of shotmaking fit a valuable archetype and supply a strong developmental base in the long run.

It's likely Ament won't be ready to contribute to a winning team as a rookie, but players in his mold are hard to find and tend to be valuable in an NBA driven by perimeter size and skill. Scouts are split on the likelihood of him reaching his ceiling, as he's not an explosive athlete and has had some challenging moments this season. His best flashes in what was a suboptimal team context at Tennessee have kept him in the lottery mix."

They've got Gillespie at #75. I suspect that he can work his way into the second round conversation with a good draft season.
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This is what I don't understand about the "he should come back argument."

Some have said it'll be an easier draft class next year so come back, but he's still a top 10 projection.

Some have said he'll benefit from another year so come back, but he's still a top 10 projection.

Even the projection blurb says, "he's probably not ready yet to contribute," but he's still a top 10 projection.

Lots of strikes against him but he's still a top 10 projection for the draft. Obviously the league believes in him highly as a prospect so he can move right now and start training at the level he wants to play at vs staying in college and playing with inferior competition.

It's obvious they believe in him to the point of a top 10 grade DESPITE his limitations. Why train another year with college kids instead of pros?
 
#391
#391
FeelVol said:
It just feels to me that he’ll be back.
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Yeah. We’ve seen so many cases like this before. The injury and the terrible game vs Michigan made this a real possibility or even probability. How can a GM justify to ownership and fans using a lottery pick to draft him. It was obvious in the tournament he’s got a long way to go before he’s ready to play in the NBA. NIL makes it very possible. Even pre-NIL it would have been a tough call. I think the departure of our entire team in basically one day was because he decided he was staying and that tied up a lot of money. Just my gut feeling. I don’t know his situation. Maybe his parents are broke or his grandma needs surgery and he need more money tomorrow. No clue. If not….the best big picture business move is invest one more year in college as a teenager.
 
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#392
#392
SayUWantAreVOLution said:
This is what I don't understand about the "he should come back argument."

Some have said it'll be an easier draft class next year so come back, but he's still a top 10 projection.

Some have said he'll benefit from another year so come back, but he's still a top 10 projection.

Even the projection blurb says, "he's probably not ready yet to contribute," but he's still a top 10 projection.

Lots of strikes against him but he's still a top 10 projection for the draft. Obviously the league believes in him highly as a prospect so he can move right now and start training at the level he wants to play at vs staying in college and playing with inferior competition.

It's obvious they believe in him to the point of a top 10 grade DESPITE his limitations. Why train another year with college kids instead of pros?
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It's a fair point. There are two key aspects.

The first is the difference between being a top ten pick and a top three pick. The second is that guys who leave when they're not ready often wash out, which makes the idea of huge money illusory.

VJ Edgecombe, last year's #3 overall, signed a four-year, $50.4 million contract, and he'll get all that money.
Khaman Maluach, the Duke center, went #10 last year. He's making $27.4 million in four years. That's $23 million in difference.

If Maluach becomes an above-average NBA player, he'll get that money back. Mid-tier second contracts are typically in the $50-$60 million range. If he's a superstar, he'll easily earn nine figures in his career.

However, Maluach is also the cautionary tale. He was drafted by the lowly Suns, who promptly turned around and became temporarily competent, even if it's illusory. They believe in veteran lineups, so he's only getting 8.5 minutes per game. If he hasn't earned court time by year three, he's not getting that mid-tier second contract.

Ament is a vastly superior prospect to Maluach, but they share the same trait. They weren't the guy on their team during their freshman year. Maulach was a complementary player to Flagg. Phoenix isn't a well-run franchise -- the opposite of it, really -- and isn't committed to Maluach. He could very well be on another team in a year or a third team by his third year. Guys like that kick around the bottom of the league and wind up getting DNP-CD designations.

I don't think Ament is that guy, but Risacher went #1 overall less than two calendar years ago. He got DNP-CD for the Hawks in a key game with playoff implications just the other night. Risacher wasn't ready for the NBA, and it shows. So, there's an open question about whether the Hawks are committed to him.

If Ament goes to the NBA and isn't ready, that could be him. Everyone was saying 2024 was a horrible draft, but nobody thought Risacher would completely wipe out. I still don't think that, but I can no longer rule it out. Ament's in that same boat as a tall natural scorer who lacks aggression thus far.

Just because he's a top ten pick on paper doesn't mean he'll actually go in the top ten, either. That's the Jalen Johnson thing I mentioned. Just last year, Derik Queen went from being a top five pick to #13. Vols fans still can't believe Dalton Knecht was on the board at #17 in 2024. During the Wemby year, Cam Whitmore was getting top three buzz before going #20...and #20 appears to have been a more accurate reflection of his skills.

What NBA draft analysts are saying isn't necessarily what scouting departments are saying privately. I believe some bad team would bet on Ament's tools, but his NBA success and a massive second contract is far from assured. Meanwhile, another year of CBB with a big NIL check gives him time to work on his game. He'd play next season at 19/20 and still be young by today's NBA Draft standards.

I mean, Yaxel Lendeborg will be 24 by the time the season starts, and ESPN has him ranked #12. All the stuff we know about CBB and the NBA has changed a revolutionary amount in just three years.
 
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#393
#393
It's not about his rookie contract. It's about his second contract. If he's good, it will be tons more in his first year of a second deal as opposed to a last year of his first deal, which would be the same year if he stays.
 
#395
#395
TennesseeFan07 said:
It's not about his rookie contract. It's about his second contract. If he's good, it will be tons more in his first year of a second deal as opposed to a last year of his first deal, which would be the same year if he stays.
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It's the "if he's good" part that matters the most. There's an uncertainty factor all players have. The washout rate in the NBA is staggering. Look up any draft and see whether eight players were noteworthy. The NIL money is guaranteed in college. The second contract money in the pros is "prove it or lose it."
 
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#399
#399
GoneViral said:
It's the "if he's good" part that matters the most. There's an uncertainty factor all players have. The washout rate in the NBA is staggering. Look up any draft and see whether eight players were noteworthy. The NIL money is guaranteed in college. The second contract money in the pros is "prove it or lose it."
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The NBA contract is guaranteed for 1st rounders. He will get less money, for less development in college if he returns.
 
#400
#400
VolArmy74 said:
The NBA contract is guaranteed for 1st rounders. He will get less money, for less development in college if he returns.
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The first contract is. Everything after that must be earned. As for the development, we'll agree to disagree there. Many of the bad NBA teams stay that way because player development is non-existent. It shouldn't be that way, as NBA teams have every resource imaginable, yet it's a recurring problem. Circling back to Maluach, Phoenix doesn't even want rookies. The only way he's gonna get better there is if he takes it on himself.
 
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