“First and foremost, I would like to thank my family, coach (Bruce) Pearl, the rest of the coaching staff, my teammates and especially the Tennessee fans,” Smith said at a news conference in Thompson Boling Arena. “They have made my college experience everything it is supposed to be. I have been blessed with the opportunity to play basketball for this university.
“This past year has been very special for me. The way that my teammates and the community has supported me going through this hard time this past year after losing my father meant a lot to me.
“For as long as I can remember I have wanted to play in the NBA. Since the end of the season, coach Pearl, my mother and I have sat down to talk about my future. I came to the conclusion that I want to be a Volunteer next year.”
An Associated Press honorable mention All-America and a consensus first team All-Southeastern Conference selection, the 6-foot-7 Smith led the Vols in rebounding (6.7 rpg) and assists (3.4 apg) and ranked third on the team in scoring (13.6 ppg). Tennessee finished the season with a school record 31 wins and won its ninth SEC championship with a 14-2 league record.
“Tyler came back for a reason,” said Pearl. “A lot of why he came back was because of what he wanted to do individually but also because of what he wanted the team to do. He will be the leader of our team now. This is going to be his team. Chris Lofton was inspirational to us because of how he trained so hard. Tyler will be an inspiration to us because of how hard he works and the type of person he is.”
EDITOR'S NOTE: Jimmy Hyams covered Tyler Smith's news conference and will have an in-depth analysis of the Vol star's decision posted shortly.