The Detroit Pistons now have two former Tennessee basketball players on its roster.
Tennessee basketball star guard Chaz Lanier was selected in Thursday's second round of the 2025 NBA Draft by the Pistons with the No. 37 overall pick. He'll join former Vol Tobias Harris in the Motor City.
Lanier is the 55th Vol to be drafted in program history and the ninth during Rick Barnes' 11-year tenure at Tennessee. Lanier is the 45th player to be coached by Barnes that has been drafted.
The Nashville, Tenn. native won the Jerry West Award in his only season at Tennessee after transferring from North Florida last offseason. The honor is given annually to the best shooting guard in college basketball. Lanier was also named the SEC's inaugural Newcomer of the Year and earned All-SEC Second Team honors.
Lanier averaged 18.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game to help lead Tennessee to its second consecutive trip to the Elite Eight. His 123 made three's set a UT record and ranked sixth on the SEC's single-season list. Lanier shot 40.5% from distance on 8.35 attempts per contest.
The newest Piston was named one of 10 John R. Wooden Award All-American after his historic campaign with the Vols. Lanier was a three-time SEC Player of the Week and two-time USBWA National Player of the Week, as he scored double-digit points in 29 of his 31 games during his lone season with the Vols. He scored 17-plus in 20 games, 21-plus in 12 and 25-plus in four.
"The program, the coaches, the players, the fan base, everybody in the community, they've welcomed me with open arms," Lanier said following Tennessee's win over South Carolina on senior day. "So, it's just a lot of love from me to the University of Tennessee. I mean, it means the world to me to come back and be able to play for my home, for my home state. It's very special. It still feels surreal that I'm putting on the Tennessee uniform, being able to represent for the University of Tennessee. So it's just a blessing all in all."
Lanier was one of five finalists for the Jerry West Award. He was joined by Baylor's V.J. Edgecombe, Memphis' P.J. Haggerty, Texas' Tre Johnson and Arizona's Caleb Love.
"My family's been able to come to every home game," Lanier said. "My mom's been able to make it to pretty much every game. So, I mean, it's just special to see my family in the stands, because at North Florida they weren't always able to make it down there for every game. So them being able to come to every game, it means a lot to me.
"My dad was out there having a great time. He loves Tennessee just as much as me. So, it's just special. This is a special place. Special moment."