Pons Makes Announcement on His Future

Tennessee’s roster continues to get reshaped. This time, it’s Yves Pons announcing his time with the Vols has officially come to an end.

The graphic reads:

“I’ll always cherish my four great years at Tennessee, and I’m proud to be a Vol For Life.”

This announcement is far-less specific than Jaden Springer or Keon Johnson’s, as it doesn’t officially say what Pons is leaving to do.

But, if you look at the graphic on full-screen, there’s an NBA logo down on the bottom right below a Power T. Given that Pons went through the draft process last year but then returned to school, I don’t think it takes Sherlock Holmes or Batman to figure out what his plans are. I’d say he’s got an even-money shot at getting picked somewhere in the second round of the NBA Draft.

Pons’ senior year didn’t go as well as he, the staff or the fans hoped. The team underachieved and his numbers were down pretty much across the board. Still — that shouldn’t take anything away from how integral he’s been to the Vol hoops’ program during his tenure in Knoxville. He came here an athlete and left a basketball player.

He leaves Tennessee as just the second player (Josh Richardson) to be named to the SEC All-Defensive team twice. He’s also tied with CJ Black at 73 for the Tennessee single-season block record and sits at 8th all-time for career blocks with 137.