To make matters worse, Williams, Memphis’ top high school recruit, was (and still is) facing 6 gun-related felonies after allegedly firing at a car filled with five people—including three minors—as it was departing his home in San Diego, Calif. It’s obviously against the university’s best interests to enroll him as long as those charges stand.
Pundits throughout Memphis and around the country swarmed the program with criticism following these events. They said the Tigers weren’t NCAA Tournament-caliber. They claimed the program had NIL issues, which was always a nonsensical thing to say. CBS Sports columnist and Grind City Media host Gary Parrish even compared the Tigers to a Tubby Smith Memphis team.
“I used to say this when Tubby Smith had those two years at the University of Memphis. His rosters did not look typical University of Memphis rosters,” Parrish said during a May 4 episode of his show. “At least the roster that is put in place right now at Memphis does not look a typical University of Memphis roster.”
Memphis’ Perfectly-Executed Plan
Luckily for Memphis, Penny Hardaway and staff had a plan. And they’ve executed it to perfection in the past two months.
St. John’s transfer guard David Jones committed to the program on June 5. Louisiana transfer big Jordan Brown joined the Tigers on June 27. Finally, on Thursday night, Alabama transfer point guard Jahvon Quinerly announced his plans to play for Memphis in 2023-24.
Memphis has had prolific off-seasons in the past under Hardaway. 2019 and 2021 were especially thrilling. But what Memphis has done this year is nearly unprecedented.
What it’s accomplished this late in the game is extremely impressive. Jones, Brown and Quinerly would’ve all been among the most sought-after transfers in America had they entered the portal earlier. Getting all three of them in the summer is a rare feat that shouldn’t be taken for granted.
Memphis is surely appreciative of that fact. Thanks to what it’s done in recent weeks, the Tigers find themselves in a significantly better position than before.
Penny Hardaway has done it again. No more PG questions for this team.
Jahvon Quinerly is headed to Memphis and this is arguably the best roster Penny has ever had (with DeAndre situation pending).
JQ and Jordan Brown this late in the cycle is insane 😂
They’re not only a bona-fide AAC contender or NCAA Tournament team.
At this point, Memphis should be the preseason favorite to win the American over the likes of Florida Atlantic. Though this sounds like a stretch, the Tigers simply have better talent and comparable experience to the Owls. It all comes down to everyone meshing together, which shouldn’t be hard given the group’s collegiate experience.
As of now, Memphis’ projected starters are likely Quinerly, Mills, Jones, Teafale Lenard and Brown. Quinerly turns 25 in November. Mills turns 23 later this month. Jones turns 22 in November. Lenard turns 21 a week from today. Brown turns 24 in December.
The Tigers will be old and can still get older.
The Missing Piece
That’s because All-AAC forward DeAndre Williams is still attempting to get another year of eligibility from the NCAA. He turns 27 in October.
Beyond his age, Williams’ return would be significant for the Tigers. Right now, most say Memphis is a borderline top-25 team. I personally think it’s a borderline top-20 team.
If Williams is eligible, however, the sky is the limit for Memphis in 2023-24. With his return, most would pin the Tigers as a top-20 team in preseason rankings. For me, though, he’d easily make Memphis a top-15 team in college basketball.
High-level experience, talent and proven production is a hard combination to beat. And Williams will give Memphis an overload of all three if he returns.
The roster the Tigers have now is already extraordinary. It’s already spectacular enough to accomplish anything Memphis sets its mind to next season. The on-court product will be fantastic regardless of what happens moving forward.
Williams’ return, however, would still be a game-changer. It’d elevate Memphis from great to truly great, or from a potential AAC winner to potential national contender.
If their 27-year-old senior is available, the Memphis Tigers can possibly be one of nation’s premier teams in 2023-24.
Senior Editor for Tiger Blueprint. See more of my work on Bluff City Media, where I’m the Memphis basketball beat writer, the Men in Hoodies podcast on Apple and Spotify and on “Sports with Roman Cleary” live on University of Memphis Radio—The ROAR Fridays from 3-4 p.m. during the fall and spring.
