Memphis is a team that has been filled with excitement followed immediately by disappointment during the Penny Hardaway era. An excellent recruiter and homegrown talent, Hardaway rose to the role of head coach, putting the Tigers back on the national map. Yet, even with the talent and hype they can’t seem to meet expectations. So, what is wrong with the Tigers and how do you fix it?
Memphis is coming off the third year of the Penny Hardaway era and, after going 20-8 last season, missed the tournament but steamrolled their way to an NIT championship. All signs pointed to this season finally being their breakout year. Add a top five NBA prospect in Jalen Duren and the addition of presumed top three 2022 pick Emoni Bates, many thought Memphis had a chance not only to make the field of 68 but make a deep tournament run. However, as we enter the last week of February Memphis has actually regressed from the previous season and continues to search for an answer while their program is influx. A team that the media isn’t reporting on, the Tigers have serious issues and it is hard to find a way for them to get into the tournament without winning their conference playoff. Sitting as one of the “first four out” they will need a lot of help in the next two weeks. As time continues to dwindle down, Hardaway, his staff and the payers need to address their issues to salvage the season.
The Problem
If you were given a blind resume, and asked to rank a team with two prospects presumed to be top five draft picks, a roster coming off a twenty win season, and a fourth year head coach that has won an NIT championship, it would be expected they would be in the top 25. These are all true about the Memphis Tigers, which was the main reason they were ranked twelfth in the first AP Poll this season. Hardaway and company were poised for a breakout season and a deep tournament run that could land them in the elite eight, yet these aspirations never came to fruition. Instead the Tigers continue to fight out of the weak AAC to get into the field of 68. So, what has gone wrong to this point?
Me Over We: When the season began the two headliners for Memphis were Emoni Bates and Jalen Duren. Two presumed “all-star” talents that are expected to have long and successful NBA careers after their time in college comes to an end. With Duren most likely declaring for the draft after the season and Bates declaring after next season, the Tigers have embraced the one and done mentality which has seemed to agitate their veterans. Even though the team has won six straight they, at a time, had so much negativity in their locker room. Hardaway confirmed that veterans were jealous of the younger talent and this has seemed to cause a rift within the team. A group with a “Me over We” mentality will never be able to succeed as a team, especially at the collegiate level. When personalities come into play it corrupts a team that is supposed to be filled with semi-professionals and can poison the locker room similar to when players are upset at the professional level. In a perfect world, the team should have specifically embraced Duren and Bates and helped them adjust to the college lifestyle and the intensity that surrounds a program like Memphis. While they aren’t a blue blood like Kansas or Duke, their recent success should be celebrated by the team not gate kept. Just because the veterans have been in the program and someone else, who may be more talented comes in to challenge them for their minutes, you can’t hold it against them. Competition within the team separates good and great programs. Great coaches do not recruit to please the players on their team but to set the program up for long term success, even when the players they recruit may be in the NBA next year. For example, Kentucky recruits based on their NBA draft record, it doesn’t mean a veteran player pouts because a new five star walks through the door. If they can’t shake this mentality going forward, the program may be set up to fall short until their mentality and culture changes surrounding the recruiting process. Nothing is guaranteed. Bates only played in 2 of the Tigers last 6 wins and when he returns, it will be a major test on the team dynamic once again. Dropping their second game to SMU on Sunday was a major setback for their tournament hopes and a returning Bates could hurt more than help.
Penny for your Thoughts: Penny Hardaway is a good coach and a great recruiter. This season, in one of the first years he has faced adversity, it has felt like Hardaway shies away from the issues. In their loss to UFC, the first of a three game losing streak, Hardaway looked disconnected and uninterested in getting his team back into the game. As the Tigers tried to cut the deficit, at one point getting it below double digits, their coach and leader looked to have no interest in making adjustments calling a timeout or trying to put his team in a position to steal a game they trailed in. Instead, he leaned against the scorer’s table and watched his five players tread water falling by ten. This was the start of a three game losing streak. While they may not have won the game an engaged coach reflects on his players. Speaking at the press conference about the “negative energy” in his locker room, could it be a reflection of how they perceive their head coach?
One and No Fun: As we have already mentioned twice, Hardaway is an excellent recruiter bringing “one and done” talent to the Memphis Tigers. While this has worked for other programs, it hasn’t seemed to fit right in Memphis. The blame for this can be divided between an array of factors including, coaching, culture and unrealized potential. Our main concern is centered around team structure. Even the best teams that feature one and done prospects have “glue-guys”, a core made up of three or four year college players responsible for holding the team together and contributing on a nightly basis. Right now, Memphis is lacking these players and it has turned the program into a revolving door. Older players don’t appreciate or understand their role, younger players are trying to fit in without stepping on toes and the coaching staff seems to be doing their best to keep it all together. Winning usually cures all but the long term success of the team can’t rely on one and done players without any program grown support. If Hardaway can find a way to keep his best three and four star prospects while building veteran experience in the transfer portal, he could create a culture of team building. Even if he finds himself with two “one and dones” a year keeping the core structure of the team together will lead to long term success. Yet, he has yet to do that Sometimes pieces don’t fit, which seems to be the case this year, but being able to retain your recruits is going to be the next big step for Memphis. All three of their recruits from the 2020 class are currently playing for different schools after transferring from the program. His 2019 class of seven enrollees, including Achiuwa and Wiseman who went to the NBA after their first year, only two are currently on the Tigers roster. The other three are playing for different programs. It is extremely unsustainable to put a program together with duct tape and glue, lacking a pipeline of players is going to be their biggest weakness and the cracks are already showing in year four of the Hardaway era.
Simply put, things need to change.
The Solutions
Cut them and Gut them: Over the last three years, putting the Memphis Tigers together has been like a rubik’s cube instead of a puzzle. The locker room, based on Hardaway himself has negative energy and a “me over we” mentality. You can’t win anything when an individual is bigger than the program. Even though a majority of his recruits have left the last two years Hardaway needs to hit the reset button one more time to establish a true culture. If you have a bad attitude, fix it or transfer, not a team player you won’t be playing for the team. While I don’t think Hardaway should be ruling with an iron fist it would be much better than no rule at all. Moving forward he needs to find players that want to be Tiger regardless of their role, as he grows into the type of coach the program needs a culture and identity has to be his backbone. Without something tangible they will be destined to repeat this season until Hardaway’s relationship with the university deteriorates beyond repair. He has all the tools to make this team a true perennial contender but needs to work on establishing a culture and holding players accountable.
Switch Up the Staff: Don’t get it wrong, Hardaway is an excellent recruiter and has an incredible basketball IQ. Being able to mentor players at the collegiate level will set them up for successful careers in the NBA, G-League or abroad. However, what if this was the extent to which Hardaway should be involved in the program? Taking into consideration his impact in the community and on basketball players around the country. Memphis could move in two different directions with Hardaway after this season. One idea is asking him to add experience to the staff, similar to Juwan Howard and Phil Martelli. While still the head coach an experienced coach with the ability to keep everyone involved and accountable for forty minutes would be a step in the right direction for the Tigers. Or, a more extreme idea would be placing Hardaway in a basketball operations role with the university, paying him like a coach, to recruit, consult and work hand in hand with a new head coach. Understanding that is is hard to justify a coach with a win percentage of 66% taking a lateral step and relinquishing power to instead work in a “co-coach/recruiter role” it is much more reasonable that the University asks him to add experience to his staff. Regardless of the outcome of their season, the program and Hardaway should take a hard look in the mirror before next season.
Four More Years: A team that can only retain 2 of 10 recruits over two years is not going to be stable. For some of these men the NBA is inevitable but for players that are planning to stick around in college, you can’t keep losing them in the transfer portal. With all of the winning Hardaway has done you would think player retention goes hand in hand but that has not been the case in Memphis. The winning ways of the program and the allure of “the next big prospect” has helped sweep this max exodus under the rug but that can’t be acceptable going forward. Four more years is an exaggeration and the best case scenario in recruiting. however, players like Moussa Cisse, Boogie Ellis and DJ Jefferies would all be extremely important this year if they stuck around. Player retention has to be a place that Hardaway and staff improve upon. Being able to connect, communicate and justify the role each recruit plays on the team falls on the staff. Recruiting is a hard fought game and promises made in the process or exaggerated roles could play a part in why so many people are leaving. The solution is easy, communicate. Communication may not retain all 10 prospects over the last two years but 50% instead of 20% would put the program in a much better position. Communicating real roles and expectations will go a long way in this process which is where they need to start.
Memphis is a basketball program that has the potential to return to prominence under Hardaway. The first three years set them up for success on the surface but it is now clear they have major issues when diving deeper. Star recruits and big names can’t hide the fact the team has problems that will need to be addressed going forward. Barely hanging on to a chance at the tournament, missing the field of 68 for the second year in a row could be the wake-up call they need. Hopefully, these will be addressed before the season tips off next year.