Vanderbilt star guard Tyler Tanner makes NBA Draft decision

Tyler Tanner was one of the best guards in the country last season, and the Vanderbilt Commodores were happy to have him. They almost lost him to the 2026 NBA Draft, though. Tanner was a sophomore last season and decided to test the NBA Draft waters.  He entered his name and went through the NBA combine process. Ultimately, though, the Brentwood, Tennessee, native has decided to remove his name from NBA Draft consideration. He'll be returning to Vanderbilt for his junior season in 2026-27. Tyler Tanner is back at Vanderbilt The Dores get their 2025-26 leading scorer for another season ⚓️ pic.twitter.com/n58PrrokvH Checking in at 6-foot, 173 pounds, Tanner is a former three-star point guard recruit from Brentwood Academy. He was ranked as the No. 15 point guard in the 2024 class, according to 247Sports, though he was the top-ranked hoops recruit out of Tennessee. He committed to Vandy over Ole Miss, Belmont, Murray State, Tennessee Tech and Hampton. Now he's one of the best players in college basketball. After a freshman season that saw Tanner average 5.7 points, 1.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game in 20.5 minutes per contest, he broke out in 2025-26. As a sophomore, he scored 19.5 points per contest while adding 5.1 assists and 2.4 steals per game. He was an All-America honorable mention and a member of the All-SEC first team and SEC All-defensive team. Tanner became just the second Commodore ever to score 700 or more points in a single season with 702, and he set single-season program records for assists with 184 and steals with 86. Getting him back for next season is a huge deal for the Commodores as they look to take a big step forward in year three under Mark Byington. Andrew Kulha is probably the only sports writer you know who also doubles as a mortician. Spooky! @KulhaSports Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!