Cal transfer combo guard Dai Dai Ames committed to Tennessee basketball while on his official visit Saturday afternoon, On3’s Joe Tipton first reported. Ames originally planned to visit Xavier, Ole Miss and Kansas but Tennessee locked up his commitment while he was visiting.
Ames is coming off a strong junior season at Cal where he averaged 16.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and two steals per game. The 6-foot-2 guard was an efficient scorer, shooting 46.4% from the field, 37.6% from three-point range and 85% from the foul line.
The Chicago native’s play was strong enough to earn Third Team All-ACC honors during his junior season. Tennessee assistant coach Amorrow Morgan helped recruit Ames to Cal last offseason before ending up in Knoxville. The two reunite one year later at Tennessee.
The 6-foot-2 guard was the leading scorer on a Cal team that went 22-12 and made it to the NIT a season ago. His 25.2% usage rate was second on the Golden Bears behind Justin Pippen.
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Ames started his career at Kansas State before transferring to Virginia as a sophomore and Cal as a junior. He averaged 5.7 points in his freshman season and 8.7 points in his sophomore season before his breakout junior season with Cal.
Ames ranks as a four-star and the No. 49 player in the transfer portal according to 247sports. On3 ranks him as a four-star and the No. 88 player in the transfer portal while EvanMiya ranks Ames as a four-star and the No. 163 player in the portal.
The talented combo guard is the second commit of the transfer cycle for Tennessee this offseason, joining Belmont sharpshooter Tyler Lundblade. The duo gives Tennessee a pair of guards who can knock down perimeter shots.
Tennessee is looking to replace three of its top guards from last season with Ja’Kobi Gillespie out of eligibility and both Bishop Boswell and Amari Evans entering the portal. Ames and Lundblade are a good starting point.
As things currently stand, Tennessee now has six scholarships to work with as it feels out its roster for the 2026-27 season. If Nate Ament declares for the NBA Draft as expected, Tennessee will have seven scholarships to work with.
