How Memphis basketball has moved forward after recent drama

The Tigers hide it so well, don’t they?

If one only watched Memphis basketball’s first two games of the 2024-25 season, they didn’t see a drama-laden mess. They didn’t see a program that dismissed four assistant coaches just two months before the campaign started. They didn’t see a group that recently acknowledged an anonymous letter alleging major NCAA violations. They didn’t see a team that lost a key rotation player mere days before its first game.

No. They saw a resilient club that made consecutive double-digit comebacks against two top-100 KenPom opponents. They saw a team led by a shining star in PJ Haggerty (27 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4 assists per game), complimented by Tyrese Hunter (11.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3 assists), Colby Rogers (13 points and 4 rebounds), Dain Dainja (7.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 3 assists) and others. Most importantly, they saw a 2-0 squad poised to win the American Athletic Conference (AAC) and return to the NCAA Tournament after missing it last year.

But Memphis coach Penny Hardaway, who dismissed SMU transfer forward Tyreek Smith last week, temporarily drew back the curtain for a small group of reporters Wednesday afternoon—showing the Tigers are still dealing with the fallout of Smith’s departure.

“It’s always hard to lose someone that’s been with you from the beginning. [Smith has] been with us since June, and [Smith and the other players are] brothers. They’ll be brothers for life,” Hardaway said. “[But] guys understand the business of this sport and how that can work. We still wish him well. I’m sure the other guys still talk to him all the time.”

Smith’s absence leaves a small hole in Memphis’ frontcourt—currently consisting of Dainja (6-foot-9), Nick Jourdain (6-foot-7) and Moussa Cisse (6-foot-11). It also opens up a scholarship for Hardaway, and the seventh-year headman might use it to add another player from the transfer portal before December’s deadline. Any potential addition won’t join the Tigers until after the fall semester ends.

“There might some things in the making. Obviously, we don’t know until people actually get in the portal and things of that nature. We’re just kinda looking and waiting,” Hardaway said. “We’re not closing the door on that. We’re just keeping the door open.”

Rogers and Dainja—two seniors—both remember a time where Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) didn’t rule college athletics. They lived in a world where players couldn’t transfer to the highest bidder every year. They witnessed college basketball’s entire transformation to a borderline-professional sport firsthand, so neither seem too fazed by Memphis’ recent drama.

In fact, Rogers simply likens it to what may come in his future.

“At the end of the day, I just look at like I’m here to do a job. I’m here to make the best of my experience. I’m here to win. I’m here to become a better player, become a professional in the long run. And I think this is just part of it,” Rogers said. “When you get to the next level, it’s gonna be that. You may get traded one day. You may get cut one day. They may bring somebody in. They may fire a coach, bring somebody else in. It’s just part of the business. At the end of the day, you gotta be ready to perform each day.

“I don’t necessarily like it or don’t like it. I can’t control those things. It’s kinda out of my hands, so I don’t really try to look too much into it. I mean, now it’s kinda just part of the game. You accept it for what it is and you just continue to hoop. At the end of the day, I just wanna hoop. So, as long as that’s intact, everything else just is what it is.”

Dainja swiftly concurs Rogers’ stance.

“Just keeping the main thing the main thing, for real. That’s all,” he said.

Their indifference also extends to the possibility of Hardaway adding another player mid-season. After all, they’re not the new kids on the block anymore.

“Whoever [Hardaway] brings in is gonna have to buy in to what we’ve already bought in to,” Rogers said. “We’re already here. We’ve already bought in. If they don’t buy in, that’s kinda on them. That’s not really gonna hurt us, because we’ve already bought in. We’ve already established what we’re looking to do, what we’re trying to do. So, whoever he brings in is gonna have to more so adjust to us.”

Memphis hosts Ohio on Friday (7 p.m., ESPN+).