The battle between Austin Nichols and the Memphis Tigers has finally come to an end. Nichols has been granted his unconditional release hours after his family hired a lawyer to take his request to court, according to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman. Nichols can now transfer anywhere he wants, and Virginia appears to the favorite.
Memphis finally grants Austin Nichols unconditional release
Nichols is free to transfer wherever he wants with two years of eligibility left.
Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Nichols requested his release last week and was initially denied by the Tigers. Memphis would relent, but it limited schools he could attend, which included any program in their conference (the AAC) along with Virginia, Iowa, Providence and Tennessee.
Nichols isn’t an easy player for Memphis to lose. He was a five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American who grew up in nearby Collierville, Tenn. Nichols averaged 13.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last season as a sophomore power forward for the Tigers.
ESPN reports that Duke, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Marquette and Baylor are each interested in Nichols.
Nichols’ lawyer said on Tuesday there was a “very realistic possibly this ends up in federal court.“ Nichols is now free to transfer wherever he wants.
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