Tennessee basketball’s J.P. Estrella is entering the NCAA Transfer Portal, he announced on Instagram on Monday. The redshirt sophomore forward was the team’s third-leading scorer this season, averaging 10.0 points in 18.4 minutes per game. He averaged 5.4 rebounds per game and shot 59.6% from the field. 

“After a lot of thought and conversations with my family, I have made the difficult decision to enter the transfer portal,” Estrella wrote on Instagram. “My time as a Vol over the past three years has meant more to me than I can put into words, and I will always cherish the memories and relationships I’ve built here. Thank you to my coaches, teammates and Vol Nation for the constant love, support and belief in me. While this decision wasn’t easy, I’m excited and hopeful for what the next chapter holds.”

As of Monday, two other Tennessee players will be entering the portal when it opens on Tuesday: Junior forward Cade Phillips and freshman guard Clarence Massamba.

Estrella, the 6-foot-11, 240-pound native of Scarborough, Maine, set career highs in November with 23 points against North Florida and 11 rebounds against Northern Kentucky. 

He became the 15th Tennessee player to record a double-double in the NCAA Tournament when he had 14 points and 10 rebounds in the first round against Miami (Ohio) on March 20. His 92 offensive rebounds this season are 13th most in program history.

Estrella, who had season-ending foot surgery three games into his sophomore season in November 2024, battled a knee sprain, a sprained ankle and foot soreness this season. He appeared in 25 games as a freshman in 2023-24, playing 5.0 minutes per game off the bench. 

J.P. Estrella was a four-star prospect in the 2023 recruiting class

Estrella was a four-star prospect in the 2023 class, ranked No. 59 overall in the Rivals Industry Rating. He was the No. 8 center in the class and the No. 3 overall prospect in New Hampshire, where he attended Brewster Academy.

Tennessee (25-12) saw its NCAA Tournament run end in the Elite Eight, losing to No. 1 Michigan 95-62 in the Midwest Regional final on March 29 at the United Center in Chicago.

Tennessee’s 2025-26 roster had two sophomore guards in Bishop Boswell and Ethan Burg. The Vols had three juniors, all forwards, in J.P. Estrella, Jaylen Carey and Cade Phillips. 

Nate Ament was the star in a group of five freshmen that also included guards Amari Evans, Troy Henderson and Clarence Massamba and forward DeWayne Brown. 

Tennessee’s had four seniors on the 2026-27 roster: Point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie, guard Amaree Abram, center Felix Okpara and walk-on guard Grant Hurst.

Tennessee looking to add scorers in NCAA Transfer Portal

The Vols will be have to look to add multiple scorers out of the NCAA Transfer Portal while having to replace Gillespie at point guard and Ament on the wing.

The NCAA Transfer Portal opens on April 7, after the conclusion of the Final Four, and will stay open until April 21. It was announced in January that the portal window was shrinking from 45 days to 15 days.

The 15-day window only applies to portal entries. Players do not have a deadline to commit to a new school after entering the portal. If a head coach leaves a school, players will have a separate 15-day window to enter the portal.