Memphis Basketball: Why the Penny Hardaway rumors make sense
Rumors and reports suggest the Memphis Tigers may soon replace head coach Tubby Smith with Penny Hardaway.
Memphis may be on the verge of welcoming Penny Hardaway back into the fold.
Gary Parrish of CBS Sports reported Tuesday that the Tigers are considering bringing in Hardaway as the next head coach, at the expense of Tubby Smith. The report added that Larry Brown would be a prospective assistant choice for the coaching staff.
Outside of some unnecessarily harsh words about transfers, nobody can question Smith’s coaching acumen. He’s nearing 600 career victories, has several Coach of the Year honors, and won a national championship.
Things deteriorated in Memphis during his second year in charge, though. The Tigers managed to go 19-12 during the regular season, but that obscured plenty of transfer drama before the season. Attendance is down for one of the AAC’s proudest programs and recruiting has dipped as well.
Hardaway may not be able to improve upon that record right away, but he can solve the other problems fairly quickly. Born in Memphis, the guard became a superstar for the Tigers in the early-90s, developing into the third overall pick in the 1993 NBA Draft.
The school retired his number a year later. Ever since his playing career ended, he’s remained a staple in the community, coaching a high school team and running an AAU team. His presence alone would generate interest and pride in the program, bringing fans back into the seats.
The recruiting edge he would provide is more reminiscent of the practice programs follow, by hiring fathers and brothers of major prospects. Hardaway is currently coaching three five-star junior prospects: James Wiseman, Chandler Lawson, and D.J. Jeffries.
Having Hardaway in the fold certainly wouldn’t hurt their recruitment to Memphis.
Tubby Smith arguably deserves more than the two years he’s received to develop the Tigers. Those Penny Hardaway rumors are irresistible, nevertheless.