Breaking: Vols five-star player joins Indiana Pacers in a blockbuster deal following the draft.
Josiah-Jordan James, a former basketball player for Tennessee, will compete for a roster position in the NBA when he starts his professional career.
Jordan Josiah James has decided to begin his career with the Indiana Pacers.
After being left out of this week’s NBA Draft, the former guard for Tennessee signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Pacers on Friday. The Knoxville News Sentinel broke the story first thing on Friday morning.
An Exhibit 10 contract is essentially an official invitation to practice with the Pacers and try out for a place. It is a one-year agreement with a wage that is the league minimum. James has contractual rights to Indiana under the terms of the Exhibit 10 arrangement; therefore, the Pacers may choose to turn the agreement into a two-way or G-League contract.
Five-star recruit James came from Charleston, S.C., with a lot of hype, and he lived up to it in many respects. He was a stalwart in Tennessee’s lineup for the entirety of his career and was a legendary tough, adaptable, and selfless player. As he moved from point guard to wing to stretch-four power forward and battled a string of injuries, he never quite lived up to the hype in terms of scoring points. Instead, he frequently found other ways to contribute to Rick Barnes and his staff’s strategy, such as leadership, defense, and offensive facilitation.
James was a super senior last season who mainly played at the four position. Despite this, he averaged 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, and he had some standout performances along the way as the Vols advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight stage. James scored 23 points in a victory against eventual Final Four opponent N.C. State, a career-high 27 points in Tennessee basketball’s victory over Kentucky at Rupp Arena, and 20 points in the Vols’ defeat at North Carolina in the Dean Dome.
James will begin his professional career with the very competitive Indiana Pacers, who made it to the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to the Boston Celtics, the eventual NBA Champions, and are predicted to be strong contenders the following year. Next month, James will be in the NBA Summer League with the Pacers, where he will compete for a roster position.
Before signing James, the Pacers added three players in the NBA Draft. Indiana acquired Johnny Furphy, the No. 35 overall pick from Kansas, in exchange for the No. 49 and No. 50 overall selections of UConn’s Tristen Newton and Akron’s Enrique Freeman.
SEC Player of the Year and first-team All-American Dalton Knecht, a basketball player from Tennessee, was selected in the 2024 draft. Unexpectedly, Knecht missed the lottery and was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the 17th overall pick. He will play his NBA career in Hollywood with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
