Tennessee Basketball adds Israeli guard Ethan Burg

Tennessee Basketball has added a commitment from Israeli guard Ethan Burg on Friday afternoon. The 22-year-old Burg, listed as a combo guard, spent the last two seasons playing professionally in Israel.

Burg has been cleared by the NCAA and is expected to have multiple years of eligibility.

Over the last two seasons he averaged 11.0 points, 2.9 assists and 2.7 rebounds while shooting 43.2% from the field and 32.9% from the 3-point line while playing for Bnei Herzliya in Israel.

In 23.2 minutes per game last season, Burg averaged 11.1 points, 3.4 assists and 2.7 rebounds while shooting 44.7% from the floor and 37.6% from the 3-point line over 24 games. 

Burg is the second international prospect Rick Barnes and his staff have added this offseason. They signed French guard Clarence Massamba in the spring.

Five-star small forward Nate Ament, a consensus top-five player in the class, is the headliner in the 2025 recruiting class, along with four-star guard Amari Evans, four-star center Dewayne Brown and three-star point guard Troy Henderson.

The three NCAA Transfer Portal additions were Maryland point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Vanderbilt power forward Jaylen Carey and Louisiana Tech guard Amaree Abram.

The Vols return just four scholarship players (Felix Okpara, Cade Phillips, JP Estrella and Bishop Boswell) after losing six seniors (Zakai Zeigler, Jordan Gainey, Chaz Lanier, Jahmai Mashack, Igor Milicic Jr. and Darlinstone Dubar).

Tennessee’s Transfer Portal Class

Gillespie, a Greeneville, Tenn., native, started all 36 games at Maryland this season, averaging 14.7 points and 4.8 assists in 31.6 minutes per game while shooting 45.3% from the floor and 40.7% from the 3-point line, where he made 87 of 214 attempts. 

Carey, the 6-foot-8, 245-pound sophomore, averaged 8.0 points and 5.7 rebounds in 20.2 minutes per game at Vanderbilt this season. 

Abram, a former top-100 prospect and four-star recruit who made previous stops at Ole Miss and Georgia Tech, averaged 12.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists at Louisiana Tech last season, shooting 42.2% from the field and 37.3% from the 3-point line.

Tennessee’s Recruiting Class

The 6-foot-9, 185-pound Ament committed to Tennessee on April 20, after picking the Vols over Duke, Kentucky, Louisville and Arkansas. He’s the No. 3 overall player in the On3 ratings and is the highest-ranked prospect to sign with Tennessee during the recruiting rankings era.

Evans is ranked No. 69 nationally, No. 20 at shooting guard and No. 7 in the state of Georgia, where he played in the Overtime Elite League in Atlanta. 

Brown, out of Hoover, Ala., is ranked No. 96 overall. He’s the No. 9 center in the class and the No. 1 prospect in the state of Alabama. 

Henderson, who committed to Tennessee in March and signed last week, is ranked No. 259 overall. He’s the No. 36 point guard in the class and the No. 13 player in the state of Virginia.