Tennessee
Adam Sparks addresses Greg Sankey involvement in Tennessee's NCAA case
Tennessee Vols SWINGING BACK At The NCAA Over NIL Allegations
As Tennessee buckles up for a battle with the NCAA over NIL and whether it was used as an inducement to get athletes to sign with the Volunteers, lines are being drawn.
So far it’s been a relatively small contingent setting up shop against the NCAA: Tennessee, along with its chancellor Donde Plowman and the athletics department, as well as some attorneys general who have filed suit against the NCAA.
Could others, like the SEC commissioner, get involved?
“Greg Sankey is the one I think everyone is waiting to hear from,” the Knoxville News’ Adam Sparks said on the Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday. “I think we have this sort of picture in our head that all these schools are going to lock arms and just charge headlong at the NCAA. That seems like sort of a neat way to do it. I doubt that that’s going to happen. Maybe it does happen and maybe it’s sort of a proxy war of using these attorneys general, as Tennessee is benefiting from right now.
“But you’re not going to get a coalition of schools that goes after the NCAA like Tennessee is trying to do right now unless you have the conference behind you. And I just don’t know if Greg Sankey is going to take that major, major step.”
Sparks was careful to note that he doesn’t want to speak for Sankey, but he expects Sankey to have at least some level of loyalty toward the existing NCAA system.
“Because I think he does want the NCAA to exist,” Sparks said. “I think he would like to move forward in a different way than it’s been. I don’t think he wants to burn the house down. I don’t want to speak for him, but that’s sort of been the approach that you’ve seen from him over the years.”
The Knoxville News writer did raise an interesting point on the Finebaum Show, though, noting that Sankey had been involved in some capacity in Tennessee’s last interaction with the NCAA.
So at a minimum he’s likely well-briefed on the current Tennessee situation.
Does Sankey already know about Tennessee’s plans and how the Volunteers plan to go about battling with the NCAA?
“The easy answer is I don’t know,” Sparks said. “The reasonable answer is I can’t imagine that they would plunge headlong into this approach without running it by the commissioner’s office. Back even again to the (Jeremy) Pruitt hearings, it was just what, seven, eight months ago, Greg Sankey was there as his duty as commissioner. He was in the room. He met with Tennessee’s attorneys. He was in the loop. He even helped a lot with strategy, as he’s supposed to do as the conference commissioner.
“I have to think Tennessee at least ran this by and said, ‘This is how we’re going to approach this.’ I don’t know that they asked for permission, but I have to think that they ran it by the commissioner’s office, and now we just wait to see if he’s going to come out in full support or wait till things settle.”
Part of waiting for things to settle could involve waiting to see what other programs might be targeted by NCAA enforcement. To date Florida State has been hit with NIL penalties, while Florida is under NCAA investigation over its recruitment of quarterback Jaden Rashada.
Would other schools emerging as targets get them to jump into a fight against the NCAA with Tennessee?
“I think Greg Sankey is probably sitting on the sidelines and watching this play out,” Sparks said. “Tennessee will not be the last one. I’ve heard in the last 24 hours anywhere from five to 20 or more schools that allegedly are on the list that are going to get hit with NIL.
“If your school in the last two to three years had a high-profile NIL signing that was in the media and it was celebrated or you had a recruiting class with a high-dollar figure in NIL over the past two or three years you can expect the NCAA will be snooping around soon.”
See Dolly Parton celebrate Tennessean Travel Stop grand opening
The country music legend opened the first location of her Tennessean Travel Stop in Cornersville, Tennessee.
CORNERSVILLE, Tenn. — Out on the street, the traffic started jumpin’ as travelers made their way to Dolly Parton’s Tennessean Travel Stop on opening day.
“Dolly is on her way,” Tennessean Travel Stop owner Gregory Sachs told the media gathered at the new truck destination in Cornersville, saying Parton would cut the ribbon at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24.
The anticipation had been building all morning at the new roadside destination along Interstate 65. The 80-year-old country legend arrived wearing a blue-and-pink fringe ensemble, complete with her signature stiletto heels.
The “9 to 5” singer used the moment to make a playful quip about travel stop competitor Buc-ee’s.
“I’m sure some of you want to know why I wanted a truck stop,” Parton said. “Well, I couldn’t leave it to beavers.”
Parton ended the brief ceremony with a ribbon cutting, marked by an explosion of multicolored confetti featuring her signature butterfly.
The message drew cheers from guests who had spent the afternoon exploring the property, sampling food from DLY BBQ and trying a “Cup of Ambition” coffee, waiting to see whether Parton would make an appearance. Earlier promotional materials for the grand opening had stated that the country music icon would not attend the public festivities.
The appearance marks one of only a handful of public events for Parton in 2026.
In March, the East Tennessee star returned to Dollywood to launch the theme park’s 41st season after stepping back from several appearances while recovering from health issues and grieving the death of her husband, Carl Dean. During that appearance, Parton told fans she had been rebuilding herself “spiritually, emotionally and physically.”
Parton, who has been open about dealing with kidney stones, said in May that she is working with doctors after “my immune system and my digestive system got all out of whack over the past three years.”
What is Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Stop?
Located at Exit 22 off Interstate 65 in Cornersville, Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Stop officially opened to the public on June 24. The flagship location is a partnership between Parton, her longtime manager Danny Nozell and Gregory H. Sachs, owner of the Tennessean Travel Stop brand.
Inspired by Parton’s decades spent traveling the country by tour bus and her East Tennessee roots, the destination combines fuel services, food, shopping, live music and Tennessee-themed hospitality.
Bryan West is a music reporter at The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
ESPN projects Tennessee basketball’s Felix Okpara and Ja’Kobi Gillespie to be picked back to back in the second round of the NBA Draft on Wednesday night. ESPN’s updated mock draft has Okpara at No. 41 overall to the Miami Heat and Gillespie at No. 42 to the San Antonio Spurs.
Nate Ament was the No. 13 overall pick in the first round to the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. Tennessee, which has now had players picked in six straight NBA Drafts, could have three players drafted for just the second time in the modern era of the draft, since it went to two rounds in 1989.
Grant Williams was a first-round pick in 2019, ahead of Admiral Schofield and Jordan Bone being picked in the second round.
Where ESPN ranks Felix Okpara, Ja’Kobi Gillespie in NBA Draft
Entering the second round, ESPN has Okpara ranked as the 12th-best player available in the draft. Gillespie is ranked No. 14.
Duke guard Isaiah Evans is ESPN’s No. 1 prospect to start the second round, ahead of North Carolina center Henri Veesaar, Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas, Cincinnati forward Baba Miller, Louisville guard Ryan Conwell and German guard Jack Kayil.
Also ranked ahead of Okpara is BYU guard Richie Saunders, Houston guard Emanuel Sharp, Purdue guard Braden Smith, St. John’s forward Dillon Mitchell and Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile. Ranked between Okpara and Gillespie is Arizona guard Jaden Bradley.
Felix Okpara ‘played his way into the two-way contract mix’
Okpara averaged 8.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 26.9 minutes per game this season, starting 34 of 35 games. He shot 59.7% from the field, 61.1% on 2-point shots and 63.5% at the foul line.
He played two seasons at Ohio State before transferring to Tennessee and anchoring the Vols on defense, serving as the rim protector defensively and a rim runner on offense.
Okpara had the fourth-highest standing reach at the NBA Draft Combine in May at 9-foot-4. He was measured at 6-foot-10 without shoes, weighed 237.4 pounds and had a 7-2 wingspan.
“Okpara had a good predraft process,” ESPN wrote, “and played his way into the two-way contract mix as a dependable big man who chips in a little bit of value on both ends.”
Ja’Kobi Gillespie ‘profiles as a potential bench option’ in NBA
Gillespie averaged 18.4 points, 5.4 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 34.8 minutes per game while starting all 37 games in his one and only season at Tennessee.
The Greeneville, Tenn., native started his career with two seasons at Belmont, then transferred to Maryland before his homecoming with the Vols as a senior last season.
“After starting his college career at Belmont,” ESPN wrote on Wednesday, “Gillespie had good years at Maryland and Tennessee while playing his way into the NBA picture. He profiles as a potential bench option if his scoring ability can outweigh his size concerns.”
Nate Ament on Tuesday night became Tennessee basketball’s highest NBA Draft pick since Marcus Haislip in 2002 when Ament, the former one-and-done five-star freshman wing for the Vols, was the No. 13 overall pick in the first round when he was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Haislip also was taken No. 13 by the Bucks.
Ament is the 13th first-round pick in Tennessee program history and the fifth under Rick Barnes. Dalton Knecht was the No. 17 overall pick to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024, Grant Williams was the No. 22 overall pick to the Boston Celtics in 2019 and both Keon Johnson and Jaden Springer were first-round picks in 2021, with Johnson at No. 21 to the Los Angeles Clippers and Springer at No. 28 to the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Vols have had three players in program history picked in the top 10, but none since 1983.
Tennessee in the NBA Draft’s 1st Round
| Pick | Player | Draft Year | Team |
| No. 4 | Tom Boerwinkle | 1968 | Chicago Bulls |
| No. 7 | Bernard King | 1977 | New York Nets |
| No. 9 | Dale Ellis | 1983 | Dallas Mavericks |
| No. 11 | Ernie Grunfeld | 1977 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| No. 11 | Allan Houston | 1993 | Detroit Pistons |
| No. 13 | Marcus Haislip | 2002 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| No. 15 | Reggie Johnson | 1980 | San Antonio Spurs |
| No. 17 | Dalton Knecht | 2024 | LA Lakers |
| No. 19 | Tobias Harris | 2011 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| No. 21 | Keon Johnson | 2021 | LA Clippers |
| No. 22 | Grant Williams | 2019 | Boston Celtics |
| No. 28 | Jaden Springer | 2021 | Philadelphia 76ers |
Nate Ament was ranked as a top-10 prospect in the NBA Draft
Ament entered draft week ranked as both a top-10 prospect in the draft and a projected top-10 pick.
He moved up one spot in ESPN’s final NBA mock draft on Monday, going from No. 10 to the Milwaukee Bucks to No. 9 to the Dallas Mavericks. He was No. 9 overall on ESPN’s ranking of the best players available entering the draft.
“The Nets at No. 6 are seen as the high end,” Woo wrote, “but scenarios are also in play in which he falls into the second half of the lottery. Teams say he has been selective about scheduling workouts, declining to visit multiple teams in the top 10.
“The Mavericks and Bucks are two possible landing spots. If those teams go a different direction, he could slide.”
Nate Ament’s one-and-done season at Tennessee
Ament averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 35 games during his lone season with the Vols. He started in all 35 games he played and averaged 29.7 minutes per game while shooting 39.9% from the field and 33.3% from the 3-point line.
He was the No. 3 overall player in the 2025 class in the On3 recruiting rankings and was the No. 2 small forward in the country and the No. 1 overall player in the state of Virginia.
Ament is the highest-ranked prospect that Rick Barnes has added during his tenure at Tennessee and is believed to one of the highest-ranked recruits to sign with the Vols, alongside Tobias Harris and Allan Houston.
-
Texas2 minutes agoUSDA reports screwworm spread in Texas
-
Utah10 minutes ago
Edwin Munk Woolley — Obituary | Larkin Mortuary
-
Vermont12 minutes agoExperienced pros have Vermont Green women’s team on cusp of USLW playoffs
-
Virginia18 minutes agoVirginia Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 Night results for June 24, 2026
-
Wisconsin27 minutes agoWisconsin Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 results for June 24, 2026
-
West Virginia32 minutes agoMorrisey announces more than $700,000 to support rural domestic violence and sexual assault victims
-
Wyoming39 minutes agoPolitics in the Park: GOP gubernatorial candidates share visions for Wyoming governor
-
Crypto43 minutes agoThe cryptocurrency industry has entered the “Show Me” era: merely relying on vision is no longer enough | WEEX Crypto News
