Clarence Massamba’s Unexpected Arrival Could Shift Tennessee Basketball’s Fate—What It Means for the Final Roster!

Barnes indicated in July that the Vols expected Burg to see how far he could go with the national team before he came to UT.

The French guard arrived in Knoxville on Aug. 17, the day before the fall semester began as coach Rick Barnes’ roster got one step closer to completion.Burg has three years of eligibility to play at Tennessee based on the NCAA’s ruling on his standing. The 6-foot-3 guard spent the past two seasons playing professionally in Israel, which meant he lost one year of NCAA eligibility.UT signed five players in the 2025 class, which ranked No. 13 nationally.Tennessee has nine newcomers on its roster, including Massamba and Burg.

The Vols return senior forward Felix Okpara, junior forwards Cade Phillips and JP Estrella and sophomore guard Bishop Boswell. Guards Grant Hurst and Campbell Duncan round out the roster.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.When a new season looms, nothing sparks excitement quite like fresh faces joining the squad — and Tennessee basketball is dialin’ that up big time. Clarence Massamba, the 6-foot-5 French guard with a sharp shooting touch buried in his game, touched down in Knoxville right before the semester kicked off, signaling that Rick Barnes is inching closer to locking in a near-final roster. Massamba’s journey — from The Rock School in Florida back to the courts of France, then stepping into the 2024-25 season with AS Monaco’s U21 squad — paints a picture of growth and potential that’s bound to turn heads. But hold on, Massamba’s not the only headline here. Ethan Burg, the Israeli guard busy representing his country in the upcoming FIBA EuroBasket Championships, is the last puzzle piece still en route, ready to bring his international experience to the Volunteers. With nine newcomers, a stacked recruiting class ranked No. 13 nationally, and the highest-ranked recruit in program history, Nate Ament, making waves — this Tennessee team isn’t just rebuilding; they’re reloading. Expect some fire on the hardwood this year. LEARN MORE

Ethan Burg is the final player who has yet to join the Vols. The Israeli guard earned a spot on the Israeli national team to compete in the upcoming FIBA EuroBasket Championships. Israel will play their first five games from Aug. 28 to Sept. 4, which means Burg won’t arrive at Tennessee until early September at the earliest.

The Vols added senior guards Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Amaree Abram along with junior forward Jaylen Carey through the transfer portal.

Clarence Massamba has officially joined Tennessee basketball.Massamba committed to UT in April. He spent two years playing at The Rock School in Gainesville, Florida, before returning to France.Five-star prospect Nate Ament is the highest-ranked recruit in program history as the No. 4 recruit nationally. Tennessee signed four-star forward DeWayne Brown II and four-star guard Amari Evans in November. Three-star guard Troy Henderson signed in April. Henderson and Ament played AAU basketball together with Team Loaded 17U.

The 22-year-old played the past two seasons with Bnei PenLink Herzliya in Israel. He averaged 11 points, shooting 32.9% on 3-pointers. He shot 37.6% on 3-pointers last season, while averaging 11.1 points.The 6-foot-5 guard averaged 9.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists during the 2024-25 season, which he spent mostly with Espies Monaco, AS Monaco’s U21 team. He shot 34.1% on 3-pointers.