Will Barton, the brother of former Memphis guard Antonio Barton and shooting guard for the Portland Trailblazers, announced via his twitter account on Sunday afternoon that his young brother will transfer to the University of Tennessee for his senior season. Per NCAA transfer rules, Barton will be eligible to play right away for Cuonzo Martin.
The series of these three tweets by the elder Barton confirms that Will is encouraged and behind Antonio’s decision to take his talents to Tennessee.
My bro Antonio Barton has decided to attend the university of Tennessee for his senior year where he will be allowed to play right away
— Will Barton (@WillTheThrillB5) May 26, 2013
Proud of my bro for making his own decision & I'm 105% behind him. More importantly he graduating early this summer in 3 years. Yea dat tone
— Will Barton (@WillTheThrillB5) May 26, 2013
Big day for my bro. It's bout 2 go down. Know he gonna be successful its his turn. World bout 2 see how good he really is! #BartonBrothers
— Will Barton (@WillTheThrillB5) May 26, 2013
As Will Barton tweeted, Antonio will be eligible to play immediately because he is set to graduate before the fall semester commences.
It was reported by CBS’ Gary Parrish on May 22nd that Barton was deciding between four schools: Kansas State, Maryland, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
Barton was a key player in Memphis’ backcourt, but saw his minutes dip since his freshman year. As a freshman, Barton averaged 8.2 points in 24.6 minutes of action per game, but last season as a junior averaged 5.6 points in 16.7 minutes.
Tennessee figures to be a borderline Top 25 team to begin the 2013-14 season in Martin’s third year at the helm, but with Trae Golden leaving the program, the Volunteers are in need of a veteran presence in their backcourt. A seasoned guard in Barton should fill this void nicely.
You can find Kevin on twitter @KLDoyle11