Penny Hardaway has grown into one of the most successful high school coaches in the country at Memphis East High. Now he’s reportedly on his college alma mater’s radar as the Memphis Tigers contemplate replacing current head coach Tubby Smith.
Memphis is reportedly considering Penny Hardaway as its next head coach
Penny Hardaway could be next in line to take the Memphis job.
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
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.
Memphis is evaluating Smith’s future with the program and is strongly considering Hardaway as its next head coach, according to Gary Parrish of CBS Sports.
The most interesting part of Parrish’s report? Hardaway is apparently targeting Hall of Famer Larry Brown as an assistant.
Hardaway has an obvious appeal as one of the most famous players in Memphis history. He also comes with strong relationships to some of the top players in the 2019 class, including No. 1 overall James Wiseman, who plays for Hardaway at East Memphis and for his Nike grassroots program, Team Penny.
Hardaway also coaches D.J. Jeffries (No. 17 overall in 2019, per ESPN) on Team Penny and Chandler Lawson (No. 26 overall) in both high school and grassroots ball.
Hardaway started his coaching career at Lester Middle School and quickly took over at Memphis East when his top players moved on to the high school level. That group included point guard Alex Lomax, a top-150 recruit who is headed to Wichita State.
Would Penny Hardaway be a good hire for Memphis?
It comes down to one question: Can he get players?
If Hardaway can land Wiseman, he’d be a great hire. If he can bring Lawson and Jeffries with him, even better.
It’s no guarantee, though. Wiseman will have offers from everyone, including Duke and Kentucky. Lawson already had two brothers go to Memphis and eventually transfer to Kansas. Recruiting is a fragile game in college basketball. There are no assurances.
If Hardaway can use his connections and his fame to land recruits, he’d be worth a shot for Memphis. Having someone like Brown on the bench would be a great safeguard for a first time college head coach. This is definitely one of the most fascinating storylines heading into the coaching carousel.
In a recent report from ESPN, Tubby Smith expressed confidence that Memphis would retain him as head coach and his lawyer stated that Smith had only heard good things from school officials.
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