It did not take Belmont transfer Tyler Lundblade and Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes long to find common ground in their shared Christian faith. It happened quickly over the phone when Barnes called the sharpshooting wing shortly after he entered the transfer portal as a graduate and was one of a few main reasons that Lundblade chose Tennessee.
“My faith is a huge part of my life and Coach Barnes is so open about his faith,” Lundblade told RTI. “I think one of the things that was awesome was probably half the conversations we had through all the phone calls that we had before my visit and then on my visit were not even about basketball. They were about our faith. All that was amazing to me.”
Last week before Tennessee faced Michigan in the Elite Eight, Barnes discussed his faith and how he wishes he committed himself to it earlier in his life. Lundblade is doing just that in his windy college career.
That journey has tested Lundblade’s faith. He walked on at SMU and earned a scholarship before a coaching change led to his scholarship being pulled. He then walked on at TCU, earning a scholarship and then learning the Horned Frogs over signed and were pulling his scholarship while rehabbing a partial tear in his groin.
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Finally, Lundblade walked on at Belmont and proved himself as one of the nation’s best shooters— making 219 combined triples at a 43.8% clip over the last two seasons. He earned a third scholarship, stayed with the Bruins and earned Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year honors on a Belmont team that won 26 games this past season.
“It’s just been incredible to see how the Lord has worked and orchestrated this whole thing,” Lundblade said. “People have asked me if I regret places I went, but every place I went I really felt like was the right decision at the time and where we were led and every place served its purpose. … If I didn’t have the lack of success early in my career, I don’t think I would have turned into the player that I am now. It’s been awesome to see how ultimately it’s led me to Tennessee.”
Lundblade strives for a NBA future but a loaded 2026 draft class pushed him back to college for another season.
To make the NBA, Lundblade knows he has to improve on the defensive end of the court. Tennessee, who has taken shaky transfer defenders from the mid-major ranks and sent them to the NBA, was a natural fit.
“I wanted to make a deep tournament run,” Lundblade said. “I wanted to get better as a player and I don’t think there’s any better place than Tennessee for that. … For me, I really wanted to become a better defender and I don’t think there’s a better defensive coach in the country than Coach Barnes.”
The 6-foot-5 guard believes he has a high basketball IQ and plays good team defense. His goal at Tennessee is to grow in his ability to stay in front of the ball and prove he can guard at the highest college level.
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“It wasn’t necessarily about raising my ceiling, but I really wanted to raise my floor,” Lundblade said. “I think I am a very good team defender. I have a high basketball IQ but I think it’s more just proving I can stay out and stay in front of guys and hold my own on that end of the floor.
“I don’t think my film looks atrocious, but I think analytically I’m not the best defender so if I can find ways to get more deflections, snag more rebounds and impact that game statistically more, that’s going to go a long way. If I can prove I can guard in the SEC, I think I can do myself a lot of favors when it comes to getting to the NBA.”
Lundblade is right about what the analytics say about him. EvanMiya‘s analytics based rating system graded Lundblade as a -1.32 Defensive Baynesian Performance Rating (DBPR) a season ago, a far cry from his 5.25 OBPR.
Following Tennessee’s season-ending loss against Michigan, Barnes said that the Vols need more shooting on next season’s roster. Lundblade brings just that. The transfer guard wanted a program where he could improve defensively. Tennessee brings just that.
Add in Lundblade and Barnes’ shared Christian faith and the two sides made a perfect pair.
“I think we’re going to have a really good team and I couldn’t be more excited about the group we’re going to put together and our goals are set on that Final Four run for Coach Barnes,” Lundblade said. “I’m elated to get out there and start getting to work.”
