It always helps to have a familiar face around when transitioning somewhere new, and that’s exactly what a Tennessee Basketball assistant gave to Cal transfer guard Dai Dai Ames when he was making his decision out of the portal this past spring.
Ames signed with Tennessee as the No. 51 player in the transfer portal this offseason. He was also considering Xavier, Ole Miss, and Kansas, but felt like the best place for him was on Rocky Top.
“Really just the past history they’ve got in winning,” Ames said on why he picked Tennessee. “I want to be part of a winning program. And a great coach, which is Rick Barnes. So just being that made me choose my decision quickly.”
Tennessee assistant coach Amorrow Morgan also played a key role in Ames’ recruitment. Morgan was brought onto Tennessee’s coaching staff before last season and is now entering his second year on Rocky Top.
“He was recruiting me since high school,” the former class of 2023 prospect said. “He wanted me at Cal when he was at Cal, then he wanted me at Tennessee when he was at Tennessee. I chose to stick with him.”
When Ames was a freshman at Kansas State and a sophomore at Virginia, Morgan was an assistant coach at Cal. Morgan then got his wish to team up with Ames when the point guard transferred to Cal in April 2025. Morgan, though, was then hired by Rick Barnes as an assistant coach just a month after Ames’ commitment. The two didn’t get to spend a long time together with the Golden Bears, but now have a whole season together on the horizon.
“It helped a lot just by knowing familiar faces, you know, knowing what I’m getting myself into,” Ames said.
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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.
Ames’ transfer to Tennessee helped the Vols land ESPN’s No. 1-ranked transfer portal class in the nation this offseason. He’s the Vols’ fourth-highest portal addition on 247’s player rankings, and gives Tennessee a great backcourt threat to use alongside VCU transfer Terrence Hill Jr. and returning guard Troy Henderson.
Ames had nine games where he scored 20+ points last season for the Golden Bears, including a game in January in which he hit a four-point game-winning play over now-Tennessee forward Jalen Haralson’s Notre Dame Fighting Irish squad.
