If you plan on messing with Tennessee basketball’s five-star freshman Nate Ament on the court, you’re going to have to answer to a 6-foot-8, 265-pound enforcer.
Jaylen Carey, a Vanderbilt transfer forward, is taking up the role as Ament’s ‘bodyguard’ this season. The fiery big man doesn’t want opponents trying to push around the freshman, and has already made it known that anyone who attempts to will have to go through him.
Carey is taking up this job because of the potential he sees in Ament. The freshman was ranked as the No. 4 player in the country out of high school and is projected to be one of the first players taken in next year’s NBA draft.
“That kid’s gonna be special. He’s like a baby Kevin Durant,” Carey said. “I always tell him that I’m kind of like his bodyguard, I guess you could say. Whenever somebody’s bumping him around, I told him to let me know. Whenever you need, like on the floor if somebody hits you, just let me know. I got you. I want to take care of him because I know that kid’s gonna be real special, for sure.”
More From RTI: What Tennessee Basketball Strength Coach Garrett Medenwald Said During Summer Workouts
Ament comes in with a bit of a wiry frame that he’ll need to add some weight to. He is currently listed at 6-foot-9 and just 190 pounds. This makes him the same listed height as teammate Cade Phillips, but he gives up 26 pounds to the junior. DeWayne Brown II, a fellow freshman, is also at 6-foot-9, but weighs 65 more pounds than Ament.
Ament is already being asked to add some weight ahead of his first, and likely only, collegiate season. With the help of strength and conditioning coach Garrett Medenwald, it’ll be a lot of eating and time in the weight room.
He is putting in the proper effort to this point, though.
“For Nate, it’s been incredible because he’s been a guy that’s coming in, doing extra work, trying to change that frame and trying to build it,” Medenwald said. “Understanding how hard it is to put that mass on for him is challenging. Obviously, the caloric intake that he needs to put in is huge. And so learning the habits that go along with the training, it’s been fun to watch him make strides and make gains and make growth. And it’s amazing to think we only have a couple more weeks in the summer, but I’m excited to see where it ends up and then his growth process throughout the course of the season.”
