You can already pencil in one current Memphis Tiger for next season.
Forward Nick Jourdain announced his plans to return to Memphis during a postgame radio interview after the Tigers’ 82-58 victory at East Carolina Thursday night. The 6-foot-9 junior is averaging 6.4 points, 4 rebounds and a block per game while shooting 59.7% from the field and 38.9% from 3-point range. He recorded 14 points and 4 rebounds on 6-for-8 shooting against ECU.
“I’ll be back,” he told Memphis play-by-play man Dave Woloshin.
The Tigers (21-8, 10-6 AAC) are still primarily focused on this season. They have two games remaining (vs. UAB and at FAU) in the regular season before traveling to Fort Worth, Texas for the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Tournament. Memphis—currently sixth place in the league—needs to finish the season at least fourth in the AAC to receive a double-bye to the tourney’s quarterfinals. If it fails, it’d have to win four games in four days to win the tournament, which is its most likely path to this year’s March Madness.
But Jourdain’s announcement is certainly a positive development for next year. Penny Hardaway is expected to lose Jahvon Quinerly, Nae’Qwan Tomlin, Malcolm Dandridge, Jaykwon Walton, Caleb Mills, Jordan Brown and Jayden Hardaway due to exhausted eligibility, meaning the sixth-year coach is set for another roster overhaul this spring.
Memphis can still bring back much of its arsenal, though. Besides Jourdain, David Jones, Jayhlon Young, Jonathan Pierre, Carl Cherenfant, Ashton Hardaway, Noah Stansbury and Joe Cooper are all eligible to return in 2024-25.
“[Memphis fans] treat me with a lot of love. I love being a Memphis basketball player. I love playing for this city. I love the people of the city,” Jourdain said during his appearance on the Penny Hardaway Radio Show Monday. “They’ve been very kind to me and are showing me a lot of love. It’s been a lot of fun.”
The Tigers host UAB in their final regular season home game on Sunday (4:30 p.m., ESPN2).