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Tennessee appeared to find a gem last week when combo guard Freddie Dilione committed. Now, a rankings update over at 247Sports seems to confirm that.
Dilione shot up from 69th to 24th overall, going from a 92 to a 96 in the prospect ratings system. He’s now the fifth ranked combo guard in the class and the top prospect in the state of North Carolina, per the new rankings. Earlier this summer, Dilione was in the 100s and was a three-star prospect. Now he’s a borderline five-star.
The 6-4, 185 pound prospect had a productive summer, culminating with him picking Tennessee over offers from Alabama and Wake Forest. Playing at Word of God Christian Academy, Dilione has steadily increased his stock over the past season. Today, he officially arrives as a top prospect in the class.
Dilione has now put together a pretty impressive offer list, including Indiana, Louisville, Virginia, LSU, N.C. State, Xavier, Maryland and several others.
Dilione leads the 2023 group so far for Rick Barnes, who has strung together several consecutive seasons worth of top-ranked classes now. Four-star power forward Cade Phillips is also in the class, and Tennessee could be looking to add another big piece soon.
Keep an eye on four-star center JP Estrella in the coming weeks. He’s scheduled to announce his commitment on September 2nd, and Tennessee has suddenly moved to the front of the pack. The Volunteers picked up a crystal ball projection for Estrella this morning.
Rick Barnes continues to roll on the recruiting trail.
