Official practice started for the University of Memphis men’s basketball team last week, and fans will be able to get their first look at the team on Friday, October 4 at the Blue and Gray Showcase at Elma Roane Fieldhouse.
With preseason activities gearing up and the season fast approaching, Penny Hardaway has a vastly different Tigers team from last year.
Roster
Hardaway entirely revamped the roster after the disaster that was the end of last season. Only one player returns from last year, forward Nick Jourdain, as this year’s team is made up almost entirely of transfers with an emphasis on defense.
The three biggest additions of the offseason were Texas starting guard Tyrese Hunter, AAC Freshman of the Year PJ Haggerty, and Illinois big man Dain Dainja. In addition to them, Hardaway added former Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Moussa Cisse for his second stint with the Tigers, elite shooters formerly on other AAC teams in Colby Rogers and PJ Carter, and defensive minded players in George Mason transfer Baraka Okogie and SMU transfer Tyreek Smith. Hardaway brought in one freshman, Texas native Jared Harris.
The roster makeup is one of a team that should be elite defensively. The Tigers will have to heavily lean on what will presumably be their big three of Hunter, Haggerty, and Dainja for scoring. The shooting on this team will have to come from the wings, as lead guards Hunter and Haggerty are more slashers and no bigs except Jourdain can stretch the floor.
Schedule
Once again, Hardaway has put together a brutal non-conference schedule, one that features at least seven power conference teams and the back-to-back national champion UConn Huskies. Memphis will play Missouri, Ole Miss, and Mississippi St. at home and will travel on the road to play UNLV, San Francisco, Clemson, and Virginia. They will also play in the premier multi-team event of college basketball, the Maui Invitational, where they will open with UConn and could play games against other college basketball powerhouses like Michigan St., North Carolina, Iowa St., or Auburn.
In conference, the AAC is very weak this year after Dusty May left FAU for Michigan. Memphis’ biggest challenge should be UAB, but if this team is a tournament team, they should run through the AAC.
In the preseason, Memphis will play in two charity exhibitions, one against North Carolina in the Hoops for St. Jude Tip Off Classic on October 15 at FedExForum and the other against Alabama in Huntsville on October 28.
Coaching Staff
Much like his roster, Hardaway completely overhauled his coaching staff. Assistant coach Andy Borman left the program in the summer, then earlier this month, Hardaway surprisingly fired four coaches at once, including assistants Rick Stansbury and Faragi Phillips.
Hardaway has hired two assistant coaches for this year so far. Mike Davis, former head coach of the 2002 Indiana team that made the national title game, as well as UAB and Detroit Mercy, and former Duke and Louisville assistant coach Nolan Smith were both hired.
Tiger legend Andre Turner and returning staff member Jermaine Johnson may also be assistant coaches, but the roles have not been officially defined yet.
Expectations
The expectations this year are simple: make the NCAA tournament.
Memphis has the most talented team in the AAC and should be the clear favorite in a greatly diminished AAC. Additionally, their out of conference schedule presents them plenty of opportunities to gain marquee victories and boost their tournament resume.
Best case scenario, Memphis could get a top 4 seed in the tournament by taking advantage of their non-conference schedule and dominating the AAC. Worst case scenario, the Tigers falter like they did last year, miss the NCAA tournament, and Hardaway’s job becomes in question.
