Tennessee basketball got one of its key transfers back from injury and is close to having a fully healthy roster.
Christian Fermin, who suffered a hand injury that required surgery in July, is back at practice after missing nearly all of offseason workouts, according to assistant coach Amorrow Morgan. Meanwhile, Tyler Lundblade (back) and sophomore Troy Henderson (shoulder) are nearing returns.
“(Fermin's) been great. He’s actually been one of our leaders in rebounding leading up to this week, so he’s great," Morgan said on Aug. 27. "He really put the time in over the summer, I think put on 12 or 13 pounds over his time here, even with the setback that he had. So he’s going to be a great addition for what we do just the same.”
Fermin, listed at
6-foot-10 and 225 pounds, fractured his left hand in practice, then underwent surgery on July 16 and missed the final two weeks of summer workouts with the Vols.
He left the VCU program after appearing in only four games last season due to a personal matter and committed to UT on May 14. Over 72 games played during his sophomore and junior seasons, Fermin averaged 4.9 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks over 20.5 minutes per game.
Lundblade was limited in summer workouts because of a lingering back injury. Coach Rick Barnes said on July 23 that the Vols were handling his injury cautiously, but the transfer forward has been progressing well ever since.
“As for Tyler, he’s just putting one foot in front of the other, step-by-step trying to improve and just working towards getting healthy," Morgan said. "He’s very close to getting there.”
Lundblade, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard, was the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year during the 2025-26 season and first transfer player to commit to Tennessee this offseason. He averaged 15.6 points per game while shooting 40.6% from 3-point range for Belmont last season. For his career, Lundblade is a 43.5% 3-point shooter on 6.3 attempts per game.
Henderson, a 6-foot-1 point guard, played in 28 games last season, averaging 1.8 points and 6.9 minutes per game as a freshman. He is one of only two returning players on the Tennessee roster, but needed surgery to repair a nagging shoulder injury that kept him out of multiple SEC contests last season.
Morrow said Henderson, who will need to compete for minutes in a crowded backcourt, was "chomping at the bit" to get back on the floor and has been ramping up the intensity of his workouts. Participating in contact drills is the next hurdle for Henderson to clear on the way to a full recovery.
"You watch him workout, he’s full throttle ahead, full steam," Morrow said. "Hadn’t really done any contact yet but he’ll be out there very, very soon.”
Stephen Thompson covers Tennessee Volunteers men's basketball. Email him at stephen.thompson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @stephenethom.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Injury updates on Tyler Lundblade, Christian Fermin for Tennessee basketball
