As Memphis begins to navigate a pivotal offseason under eighth-year coach Penny Hardaway, the Tigers are facing the realization that they must once again rebuild an almost entirely new team for next season.
While it remains to be seen what will happen with PJ Haggerty and Dain Dainja, Memphis has lost four players to eligibility and another four to the transfer portal.
Hardaway has been revered for using the portal to land quality talent, and he’s already put those skills to work. Memphis already has seven transfers from Division I schools committed to play in the Bluff City.
With all this new talent flooding in the door for the Tigers, let’s look at what they each bring to the table on the court.
Julius Thedford
Thedford brought consistent scoring off the bench for Western Kentucky before going down with a knee injury in a game against MTSU in January.
Despite his shortened season, the 6-foot-4 Memphis native scored 12.4 points per game on 36.6% from 3-point range and earned his way onto C-USA’s all-freshman team.
With Colby Rogers and Tyrese Hunter running out of eligibility, Memphis needs quality production from deep, which is a role that Thedford fits perfectly.
Ashton Hardaway
The son of Penny Hardaway is returning to Memphis after a stint at Saint Mary’s, where he put up 2.1 points and 1.2 rebounds per game in less than 10 minutes a night.
Hardaway hasn’t had an opportunity to display his full potential due to a lack of minutes, but he’s shown glimpses of what he can do when given more time on the court. The standout performance for his young career came in the 2023 Battle 4 Atlantis, where he had 17 points on 5-for-7 shooting from 3 during his freshman year for Memphis.
Quante Berry
The tradition of the Tigers picking up a transfer from another school in the AAC is alive and well with the acquisition of Berry. A consistent starter at Temple, he had 10.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game on 46.3% shooting from the field.
At 6-foot-4, he’s primarily a rim attacker, but Berry has demonstrated an ability to shoot somewhat consistently, especially in catch-and-shoot scenarios. He shot about 34% from 3 this past season and will likely be a core piece to the Tigers’ bench unit.
Zachary Davis
Davis is one of three transfers so far to come from a Power Five conference, joining Memphis from the SEC’s South Carolina. At 6-foot-7, he becomes a top option on defense for Memphis after the departure of Nicholas Jourdain. His defensive value doesn’t always appear in a box score, but it is felt during a game.
While his main role will be as a defender, he is absolutely capable on offense. He showed his ability in a home game against Florida, tallying 22 points and four assists in a one-point loss to the eventual national champions.
Sincere Parker
Parker was a quality player off the bench at McNeese, scoring third on the team with 12.2 points per game on a solid 43.7% from the field.
Before his time at McNeese, he spent two years at Saint Louis. He spent a few games in the starting lineup in his second season at Saint Louis, averaging almost 16 points per game on 42.6% shooting from 3. His momentum was cut short that season due to a foot injury, but his ability to score at all three levels is very high.
Parker is the type of player who performs well when the competition is at its highest. He scored 12 points against Clemson and 17 versus Purdue during McNeese’s NCAA Tournament run. He also had a 19-point and three-rebound performance against the then-No. 2 Alabama.
Aaron Bradshaw
Standing at 7-foot-1, Bradshaw is the only big man that Penny Hardaway has acquired through the portal. Transferring from Ohio State, he put up six points and 2.7 rebounds a game on an average of 16.9 minutes a night.
The 2023 McDonald’s All-American will absolutely get his chance to shine at Memphis, likely finding his way into the starting lineup. He could form a potent 1-2 punch in the frontcourt alongside Dainja if the NCAA grants his waiver, much like Moussa Cisse did this past season.
Dug McDaniel
McDaniel is the most recent acquisition via the portal and is likely to start at the point for the Tigers. During his time at Kansas State, he averaged 11.4 points, almost five assists and 1.7 steals per game.
His passing ability will be extremely valuable to Memphis this season, who lost its top passers in PJ Haggerty and Tyrese Hunter. McDaniel is coming into a team with many players to finish lobs, so expect the Tigers to play vertically a lot more this season.
He’s also averaged over a steal a game for his entire collegiate career, which will make it extremely dangerous for him to get the Tigers in transition, where this team has been at its best during Penny Hardaway’s tenure.
