Four-star prospect Jermaine O'Neal Jr. says Tennessee basketball has 'everything to offer'
Jermaine O’Neal Jr. has the right relationship with Tennessee. He loves the style of play he sees from the Vols. He likes the NIL approach, too. Next on his list is making it to Knoxville for a visit.
O’Neal, the 6-foot-5, 175-pound four-star shooting guard in the class of 2025, is the son of six-time NBA All-Star forward Jermaine O’Neal.
He’s ranked No. 97 overall in the On3 Industry Ranking. He’s the No. 26 shooting guard and the No. 26 overall prospect out of Dynamic Prep in Dallas.
“First off,” O’Neal told On3’s Joe Tipton, “I really like (assistant) coach Rod Clark. I like him a lot. The head coach, Rick Barnes, recruited my dad when he was in high school. So I’ve heard a lot about him and I love his coaching style. They’re a very defense-minded team. They have a lot of versatile, athletic wings.
“They’re also great academically and one of the best NIL schools. They really have everything to offer in my opinion.”
O’Neal had a visit scheduled to Tennessee earlier this year, but had to postpone.
So far he’s taken just one unofficial visit to Texas and is looking to visit Tennessee and Arkansas while also talking to Colorado, Providence and Oklahoma.
O’Neal told Tipton he’s looking at next fall in terms of a timeline for his decision.
Four-star PF Aleks Alston talks Vols
Four-star 2025 prospect Aleks Alston has taken six unofficial visits, going to Tennessee, Ohio State, Michigan State, Xavier, Illinois and Indiana. He updated his recruitment and discussed the Vols in an interview with Tipton on Thursday.
“It was nice,” Alston told Tipon of the Tennessee visit. “It was a whole different type of experience for me. I’ve never been around SEC programs.
“Going down there watching how they are in practice, it’s quick and fast. Get it and go. My time there was really nice. They welcomed me and it felt like family there as well.”
The 6-foot-8, 170-pound power forward out of Chicago is ranked No. 84 overall in the On3 Industry Ranking, ranked No. 14 among power forwards and No. 2 overall in the state of Illinois.
Tennessee signee Bishop Boswell stands out at John Wall Holiday Invitational
Four-star point guard Bishop Boswell, out of Myers Park High School in Charlotte, is currently Tennessee’s lone member in the 2024 recruiting class.
He committed to the Vols in September and signed during the fall signing period in November, ranked as the No. 65 overall player in the On3 Industry Ranking.
The 6-foot-4, 195-pound Boswell, a former football player, is ranked No. 10 among point guards and No. 7 overall in the state of North Carolina, where he led his Myers Park team to a state championship as a junior last season.
Boswell on Wednesday was identified by On3’s Jamie Shaw as a standout at the John Wall Holiday Invitational.
“Bishop Boswell is an aggressive downhill guard,” Shaw wrote. “He played in constant attack mode in (his) game, touching the paint and playing with good balance.
“He will need to continue working the reads and knocking down the jump shot, but his defense is productive, consistently. Boswell finished with 15 points and four assists.”
