Penny Hardaway has already stolen a four-star recruit for Memphis

Penny Hardaway has been the Memphis basketball coach for all of 24 hours, but he’s already on the precipice of picking up his first major recruit.

Alex Lomax, a four-star point guard originally committed to Wichita State, has asked for and been granted his release from the Shockers. Lomax has played for Hardaway since their days at Lester Middle School. The two just won their third straight state championship at East Memphis High School days before Hardaway officially took the Tigers job.

Lomax isn’t committed to Memphis yet, but there’s no doubt that’s where he will end up in the near future.

Memphis hired Hardaway in large part because of his ties to the local high school scene. He built East Memphis into a powerhouse and also runs Team Penny, a grassroots program on Nike’s EYBL circuit. The addition of a player like Lomax is exactly why Hardaway got this job.

Lomax is a nice first building block, but it will hardly stop there. The big fish is 6’11 center James Wiseman, the No. 1 player in the class of 2019. Wiseman starred for Hardaway’s teams both in high school and in grassroots. He has offers from Duke and Kentucky and everyone else. Memphis is betting his connection to Hardaway will swing the recruitment.

Hardaway also coached Chandler Lawson, a 6’8 forward ranked No. 26 in the 2019 class. That name means a lot to Memphis fans. Lawson’s two older brothers, Dedric and K.J., each committed to the Tigers in 2015 as top-50 recruits after the program put their father on staff. Both spent two years at the school as productive players before transferring to Kansas and sitting out this season.

Hardaway’s ultimate success will be determined by his ability to land players like Lawson and Wiseman. But already, Memphis has leveraged Hardaway’s connections to land its point guard of the future.

So far, Penny’s off to a good start.