Tennessee basketball has long made four-star power forward Latrell Allmond a priority in its 2026 recruiting class, with the Vols offering him all the way back in 2023 and hosting him on an unofficial visit last fall. Allmond returned for his official visit this weekend as he nears his commitment.
“I feel like Tennessee left a really good impact on me this weekend,” Allmond said Sunday following his visit. “It’s really dawning on me that there is a ton of culture there and a ton of pride. You can tell how much they really love each other.”
Allmond ranks as the No. 26 player and the No. 6 power forward in the country according to the 247sports composite rankings. The Richmond native is the No. 2 player in the state of Virginia and the highest ranked four-star recruit in the class.
He also has a connection to Tennessee, playing his junior high school season with Tennessee freshman point guard Troy Henderson at John Marshall High School. Allmond watched Henderson and Tennessee practice during his multi-day official visit and liked what he saw.
“I got to watch some of practice and I feel like I got a really good feel for Tennessee basketball with this whole weekend,” Allmond said.
“I liked how he (Rick Barnes) was in practice. Most of the coaches at his age don’t really run practice, they’re kind of laid back and let the assistants do it. He’s more hands on, he’s the one that orchestrates practice, he’s talking to the guys. He’s still leading young men in the right direction. So just seeing that at his age is kind of impressive, and to see how he loves the game.”
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Allmond’s official visit allowed him to not just watch Barnes run practice but to spend time with him off the court. The 6-foot-8, 225-pound power forward came away impressed.
“I spent a lot of time with Coach Barnes this weekend, got to pick his brain a little bit more,” Allmond said. “I got to know him as a person a little more. I got to see how he carries himself around his team and his staff.”
Allmond released a top nine back in the summer that included Tennessee, Maryland, Indiana, Virginia, Arizona, Kansas, Michigan State, Miami and Oklahoma State. He took an official visit to Indiana back in June and has an official visit scheduled to Oklahoma State for next week.
Other outlets have reported that Allmond plans to visit Virginia later this month but Allmond said that Oklahoma State is the only other visit he plans on taking right now. The four-star recruit plans on making a final decision in October as Tennessee pushes to land his commitment.
“I feel like Tennessee left a really good impact on me this weekend,” Allmond said. “It’s really dawning on me that there is a ton of culture there and a ton of pride. You can tell how much they really love each other. … Now it’s just up to me to make a decision.”
