Memphis Basketball: 6 guards to target after missing out on Jaden Bradley

It’s been a rather interesting offseason for Memphis Basketball when it comes to the backcourt. The program knew that it would have to deal with replacing star guard Kendric Davis, who led the team with 21.9 ppg and 5.4 apg this past season and was a former AAC Player of the Year.

The good news is that the Tigers looked to be set at the ball-handler position for the 2023-24 campaign. They not only had top-100 incoming freshman Ty-Luar Johnson on board but they also had five-star combo guard, Mikey Williams. Not too long ago, Williams was getting a ton of hype as one of the best overall prospects in the 2023 recruiting class.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, there’s a chance that neither will be on the opening-season roster. The team and Johnson parted ways over a week ago while Williams was recently arrested for felony gun charges and may not be available for them on Day 1. Making matters worse, Jaden Bradley, a high-priority commit for the program and transfer from Alabama, committed to Arizona on Wednesday.

Memphis did make a move to rebound, adding UCF transfer Jayhlon Young. He averaged 4.5 ppg and 2.0 apg off the bench in 19 mpg on 38% shooting from the field. He and Florida State transfer Caleb Mills is a solid backcourt but if Williams isn’t available, the Tigers are going to need one more guard to feel good about next season.

There’s one week left for the transfer portal to be open but there’s not a ton of quality guards available for the Tigers. Here’s a look at six options that the program could target to make the roster more viable.

*I didn’t include free agents such as Joe Girard and Noah Thomasson since their recruitments already have a group of finalists.