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The Commercial Appeal (Memphis, Tennessee)
The University of Memphis announced a news conference for Tuesday to introduce its new men's basketball coach, who is expected to be former Tigers star Penny Hardaway.
While the school news release did not mention Hardaway, an athletic department official confirmed earlier on Monday that the event is intended to announce Hardaway's hiring.
The news conference is scheduled for 11 a.m. in the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center on the university's Park Avenue campus. The public is invited to attend, although the school said seating will be limited.
Hardaway, 46, will replace former coach Tubby Smith, who was fired Wednesday after two seasons.
This will be Hardaway's first college coaching job. He would be the third Memphis alumnus to lead the men's basketball team, joining Wayne Yates (1974-79) and Larry Finch (1986-97).
USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee reported Hardaway's expected hiring Thursday. Over the weekend, he led East High School to its third straight TSSAA Class AAA state championship.
One person with direct knowledge of the situation said last week that Hardaway's representatives had been in negotiations with university officials about a contract since the Tigers' season ended in the American Athletic Conference tournament semifinals.
One source close to Hardaway said he is fielding phone calls and inquiries from potential assistant coaches and staff members, although he has yet to decide what his staff at Memphis will look like.
Hardaway's return to campus should provide an instant jolt in fan excitement and on the recruiting trail. Hardaway has ties to several top-100 2019 recruits because he also runs the high profile Memphis-based AAU program, Team Penny.
Memphis finished with a 21-13 record this season and missed the postseason for the fourth straight year. After both of Smith's 2018 recruits decommitted last week, Hardaway will have at least three scholarships available to use next year.
Attendance at Tigers' home games hit a 48-year-low this season, and the athletic department could miss out entirely on an $800,000 payment from the Memphis Grizzlies as part of the school's lease with FedExForum.
Donations to the athletic department also decreased by $1.1 million during the 2016-17 fiscal year largely because of a drop in men's basketball season-ticket sales.
In the school's statement announcing Smith's firing, it cited "the best financial interest of the University of Memphis."
The hope is Hardaway's status as a local legend will immediately reverse those trends.
Hardaway starred at Treadwell High and chose to stay home and play at Memphis despite suitors from around the country.
He went on to earn All-America honors two years in a row for the Tigers (1991-92 and 1992-93) before being selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 1993 NBA draft. He was a four-time All-Star and played 15 seasons in the NBA.
Hardaway returned to Memphis after his retirement and got involved in the city both philanthropically and through the grassroots basketball scene. He earned a bachelor's degree in professional studies from the university in 2003.
On Tuesday, he will officially begin a new era at Memphis.
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