Busting Brackets
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Memphis Basketball: 2018-19 season preview for the Tigers

By Holden Walter-Warner

NEW ORLEANS, LA - FEBRUARY 15: Penny Hardaway attends the Sears Shooting Stars Competition 2014 as part of the 2014 NBA All-Star Weekend at the Smoothie King Center on February 15, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - FEBRUARY 15: Penny Hardaway attends the Sears Shooting Stars Competition 2014 as part of the 2014 NBA All-Star Weekend at the Smoothie King Center on February 15, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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RALEIGH, NC – MARCH 23: The Memphis Tigers cheerleaders perform in the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers during the third round of the 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at PNC Arena on March 23, 2014 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC – MARCH 23: The Memphis Tigers cheerleaders perform in the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers during the third round of the 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at PNC Arena on March 23, 2014 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

When the 2018-19 season begins for Memphis Basketball, a new, yet familiar era of college hoops will renew itself thanks to a new coach.

The Memphis Tigers are not the best mid-major program entering the 2018-19 season. That distinction falls to the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Nevada Wolf Pack, among others. There isn’t a more intriguing mid-major in the country than the team that shacks up in the great state of Tennessee, though.

After a few years of unsatisfying results from Tubby Smith, the Tigers decided to go in a different direction by hiring a new head coach. They didn’t look for a young star rising through the lower mid-major ranks or a wise, proven commodity looking for a job out of sheer luck.

Instead, they turned to the city’s prodigal son, Penny Hardaway. It was the most sensational coaching hire of the offseason in all of college basketball.

Hardaway wasn’t plucked out of obscurity and a cushy NBA retirement, mind you. He’s been coaching at the high school and AAU level in Memphis, leading several championship squads and connecting with star recruits of the future.

Nobody is expecting him to walk through the door and become the next John Calipari by the time March 2019 rolls around. Drawing more excitement and energy to the program is what it’s all about during Year 1.

This season and the near future of the Tigers program will be a referendum on whether or not the administration made the right choice in bringing back Hardaway.

Here’s a full preview of the 2018-19 season for the Memphis Tigers.