KNOXVILLE — There is no ability in sports quite like availability.
Tennessee's run to the Southeastern Conference regular-season championship in men's basketball this year will mostly be remembered for Dalton Knecht's monster scoring performances, the offensive and defensive wizardry of point guard Zakai Zeigler, and the improved post play of Jonas Aidoo.
Yet the simple health of the 2023-24 Volunteers should not be overlooked. Tennessee's top eight performers — Knecht, Zeigler, Aidoo, Josiah-Jordan James, Santiago Vescovi, Jordan Gainey, Tobe Awaka and Jahmai Mashack — have combined to play 247 out of a possible 248 games since the season tipped off with an 80-42 dismantling of Tennessee Tech on Nov. 6.
"When we're all at full strength and we're able to go out on a nightly basis and have everybody, it's huge," James said Saturday night after the 85-81 loss to Kentucky concluded a 24-7 regular season with a 14-4 record in league games. "We rely on our depth a lot, and we have a lot of confidence in any of the five guys who are on the court to get the job done. Being able to be where we're at with seven losses, we've got to be able to attribute that to the way guys are taking care of their bodies on a day-to-day basis.
"The season is taxing, and it's grueling on you physically and mentally, and I commend everybody for staying on top of their health. I've got to thank God for that as well, because freak accidents can happen."
Awaka missing the Nov. 29 game at North Carolina with a right ankle injury is the only time one of Tennessee's top eight players had to sit. Vescovi didn't play in the exhibition matchups against Michigan State and Lenoir-Rhyne due to the death of his grandmother in Uruguay, and Zeigler's minutes were limited in the first few games due to the torn ACL he suffered late last season.
Of the 10 players who averaged more than 10 minutes on last season's 25-11 team that reached the NCAA tournament's Sweet 16, only Mashack and Olivier Nkamhoua were healthy enough to play in all 36 games.
This season's health absolutely affected playing time on the roster, as nobody outside of the top eight played in more than half of the league games for the Vols. Redshirt freshman guard Freddie Dilione V and freshman forward J.P. Estrella competed in exactly half, with neither averaging five minutes.
"I think we can go deeper, and I was prepared to go deeper," coach Rick Barnes said Saturday. "I put Freddie in today, because in these last weeks he's done some good things. I'm proud of all of our guys, because I think every one of them has improved.
"We can get better, and as a coaching staff, we believe in our depth."
Lamonte Turner (2019-20), John Fulkerson (2020-21) and Nkamhoua (2021-22) are notable Vols in the Barnes era who had seasons cut short due to various injuries, but this year's team will seek to remain healthy entering this week's league tournament in Nashville. Tennessee finished one game ahead of Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky and South Carolina in the SEC standings, with John Calipari's Wildcats having closed out the regular season with five straight wins.
Calipari was quick to point out Saturday that his Wildcats were playing better because, "We're healthy now."
Tennessee will open SEC tournament play Friday at 1 p.m. Eastern against the winner of Thursday afternoon's game between eighth-seeded LSU and ninth-seeded Mississippi State University. Should MSU prevail and then Tennessee top the Bulldogs, the Vols would have defeated every league team this season at least once.
"I'm happy that everybody has been able to stay healthy up until this point," James said, "and I'm excited to move forward."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.