Heartbreaking news: The Memphis Tigers head coach, Penny Hardaway, has been suspended after she proved that all mens should…
Memphis coach Penny Hardaway received a three-game penalty on Wednesday from the infractions panel due to recruiting irregularities connected to two in-home visits with prospects two years prior.
The fine is the result of a compromise reached in December that let the school close the case and start probation while one person contested the severity of the accusations. That was, in fact, Hardaway, the former NBA player and Memphis star who was charged under the regulations governing head coaches’ accountability for behavior inside their organizations.
In September 2021, an assistant coach paid the Dallas prospect a visit at his residence, and Hardaway visited around two weeks later. According to NCAA regulations, juniors were not allowed to do in-home visits unless they took place at the prospect’s present school in April of that year.
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Starting in November of 2023–24, Hardaway will miss the first three games of the season. He admitted to being ignorant of the rule to the NCAA.
Penny Hardaway during the match
On March 17, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio, during the second half of the Memphis Tigers’ game against the Florida Atlantic Owls in the first round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena, head coach Penny Hardaway speaks with the referee. (Getty Images/Dylan Buell))
The panel declared, “Ignorance of the rules is not an excuse.” “The head coach’s inattentiveness to compliance — particularly at a time when his program was under scrutiny related to a different infractions case — resulted in careless violations.”
A separate NCAA investigation from 2019 about the recruitment and brief college career of one-and-done center James Wiseman had been weighing on the institution. In the end, the NCAA punished Memphis with three years of probation, a public censure, and a fine through its recently established Independent Accountability Resolution Process. Hardaway did not receive a postseason ban or any other special treatment.
Don Jackson, a lawyer from Alabama who represented Hardaway, described the decision as “flawed, yet predictable.”
“This case was pursued for one reason (and one reason only): because of the Enforcement Staff’s dissatisfaction with the outcome of the IRP decision of last fall,” Jackson stated in a statement. “A decision will be made in the coming days on whether to appeal.”
Penny Hardaway during the match
On March 5, 2023, in Memphis, Tennessee, head coach Penny Hardaway of the Memphis Tigers reacts during the second half against the Houston Cougars at FedExForum. (Getty Images/Justin Ford))
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Memphis said in a statement that administrators “strongly believe Coach Hardaway never intentionally committed a violation.”
“We will learn from this incident and be even more diligent in our education and monitoring,” the institution stated. “Now that the entirety of this case is finalized, we will move forward in support of Coach Hardaway and our men’s basketball program, as we do all our programs.”
The assistant’s visit was originally scheduled to take place at the high school but was moved to the home “due to scheduling issues,” according to the panel’s report. Both home visits lasted approximately fifteen minutes.
Hardaway made the visit while on his way to see his son compete in a basketball tournament, go golfing with pals, and meet another potential in the region. The investigation was eventually started after the family shared a picture of themselves with Hardaway on social media.
Hardaway “attempted to deflect blame” throughout the case, according to the NCAA, by claiming that the prospect’s year had been accidentally entered into the program’s compliance software by the recently promoted director of recruiting, which may have raised an alarm. As stated in the report, Hardaway said during the infractions hearing that “it was not his responsibility” to obtain the training, despite having never confirmed that the recruitment director had received system training.
