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Penny’s and Some Others’ Thoughts

Mark Weber - Commercial Appeal
No one knows for sure whether Memphis’ first year coach Penny Hardaway will be the next big thing in college basketball or just another former NBA star learning on the job.
Hardaway has coached the Tigers to a 13-7 record and the Tigers are 5-2 in the American Athletic Conference. But that hasn’t stopped Hardaway from saying his team could play with anyone in the country after they upset Central Florida in American play last weekend.
And it hasn’t stopped him from trading jabs with on in state rival Rick Barnes of top-ranked Tennessee after a 102-92 loss to the Vols in December following a scuffle between his freshman guard Alex Lomax and Vols’ guard Jordan Bone when he claimed UT players were talking trash toward his players—or any other coach who might stand in the way of the Tigers, who has not been to the NCAA tournament since 2014, from becoming a national power again.
“I’m getting used to this as a coach because it’s a little jealousy from a lot of these coaches around the country,” Hardaway said. “I say that because we are NBA players trying to come back, and we didn’t have any experience as college coaches. So, we didn’t quote, unquote, ‘Pay our dues.’ So, the coaches and their so-called boys that are in the media they’re going to always throw jabs at us.”
The latest coach to tell Hardaway to keep everything in perspective was long-time successful former college coach Tom Penders, who won 648 games in 40 years as a college coach and led Rhode Island, Texas, George Washington and Houston to NCAA appearances.
 “Woah! Beat Houston before you make such a statement,” Penders tweeted. “Houston would be a much better measuring stick. What is UCF’s March Madness record? I love Penny but he just put a target on his own back if Memphis doesn’t make the NCAA Tournament. Be happy about a nice home win!”
Hardaway did not react well to that comment or the backlash he said he hears after making an NBA-approach and adding former pros Mike Miller and Sam Mitchell, who was also an NBA head coach, to his staff. “For sure, I definitely feel like there’s a target on my back,” Hardaway said. “There’s a lot of people that don’t want me to succeed because it’s going to look like an NBA guy came back with no experience and won so of course, I relish in that.”
Hardaway, who coached Memphis East to three straight Tennessee state championships and was successful as a head coach on the Nike EBYL summer travel circuit, did have the luxury of starting his college coaching career at his alma mater, which advanced to Final Fours in 1974, 1985 and 2008, last spring. His status as an NBA icon helped him sign one of his former stars, 7-0 center James Wiseman, the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2019.
Ultimately, Hardaway is going to be judged like any other coach– by his team’s success or failure. Former NBA stars have had who have come back to coach college basketball have coached have had mixed results. Fred Hoiberg, who had no coaching experience when he took the Iowa State job, wound up as an NBA head coach with Chicago five years later after a Sweet 16 and two Big 12 tournament titles. Conversely, Hall of Fame guard Chris Mullin is still trying to figure it out in his third year at St. John’s.

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