Memphis basketball has its first commitment from the transfer portal.
Tulsa’s PJ Haggerty will be a Tiger next season, he announced on social media Thursday morning. Haggerty and Memphis reportedly had “mutual interest” in one another from the moment the 6-foot-3 guard joined the open market last week. Head coach Penny Hardaway and Co. beat out Texas, Kansas State and Providence for the Crosby, Texas native.
Haggerty, a rising sophomore, was the No. 2 player in the transfer portal according to On3. The American Athletic Conference (AAC) Freshman of the Year averaged 21.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.9 steals on 49.3% shooting for Tulsa this season. But the Golden Hurricane finished 2023-24 with a lowly 16-15 record (7-11 AAC), and a 84-79 loss to East Carolina in last month’s conference tournament.
The 19-year-old, who turns 20 on April 13, started his collegiate career at TCU as a 4-star high school prospect. He only played in six games for the Horned Frogs, however, and ultimately redshirted in the 2022-23 campaign before transferring to Tulsa. He enters next season with three years of eligibility remaining.
Haggerty put up 27 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals on 10-for-19 shooting during Tulsa’s home matchup with Memphis back in January. The Golden Hurricane overcame a seven-point deficit in the final 63 seconds to nearly force overtime and possibly upset the Tigers—ranked No. 15 in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 at the time. But guard Jahvon Quinerly nailed a 3-pointer with four seconds left to help Memphis escape the Reynolds Center with a 78-75 victory.
Quinerly, who Haggerty will presumably replace as Memphis’ starting point guard next season, is one of seven Tigers who has expired his eligibility. The other six are Nae’Qwan Tomlin, Caleb Mills, Jaykwon Walton, Jordan Brown, Jayden Hardaway and Malcolm Dandridge. Penny Hardaway has also lost Jonathan Pierre, Jayhlon Young and Carl Cherenfant to the transfer portal, so the seventh-year coach must replace at least nine players this offseason with Haggerty now onboard.
Forward Nick Jourdain, a rising senior, publicly announced his return to Memphis back in February. But sources have recently indicated that he’s still deciding his plans for next year. The Tigers can also bring back David Jones, Joe Cooper, Ashton Hardaway and Noah Stansbury.
Besides Haggerty, 4-star high school recruit Jared Harris is the program’s only incoming player as of now.