After helping his University of Tennessee men’s basketball team to the Elite Eight, it looks like Maine native J.P. Estrella is on the move.
Estrella, a 6-foot-11 forward from Scarborough, announced Monday in an Instagram post that he has decided to enter the NCAA transfer portal. That means the redshirt sophomore will likely be playing somewhere other than Tennessee next season.
“After a lot of thought and conversations with my family, I have made the difficult decision to enter the transfer portal,” Estrella said Monday. “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.”
Estrella missed most of last season with a foot injury that required surgery. He bounced back this year to become the Volunteers’ third leading scorer, averaging 10 points and 5.4 rebounds per game and working his way into the starting lineup.
“Thank you to my coaches, teammates and Vol Nation for the constant love, support, and belief in me,” Estrella said. “While this decision wasn’t easy, I’m excited and hopeful for what the next chapter holds.”
Tennessee won three games in this year’s NCAA March Madness tournament before falling to Michigan in the Elite Eight round. This was the second-straight year that a Maine-born player made a deep tournament run, following Cooper Flagg’s trip to the Final Four last year with Duke University.
Estrella’s mother, Allie Booth Estrella, is a former Miss Maine Basketball winner who went on to play at Boston College. She spoke with the Bangor Daily News recently about her son’s rise in college basketball.
“He always has played with energy. That’s his motivator, and he loves the game of basketball,” Booth Estrella said. “And I think I told him once, when the game of basketball becomes a job, it’s time to hang up your sneakers. So if you’re not having fun out there playing the game that you love, you’re never going to get better.”
Estrella won a Class AA state championship with South Portland High School in 2022 before transferring to New Hampshire prep school Brewster Academy for his senior season in high school.
“He was obviously a super talent,” said Kevin Millington, who coached Estrella at South Portland. “I just finished my 29th year and he’s the only scholarship player I’ve coached, so anytime you have somebody of that talent, it makes things a little easier on a coach. He’s such an easygoing, free-spirited, positive kid. So he just makes practice fun. He gets along really well with everyone and he kind of lightens the mood.”
