Penny Hardaway's name popped up recently as he was reported as a candidate to be the next head coach of the Orlando Magic. Although that's no longer the case after he took his name out of the list, he still has a reason to be happy about after the Memphis Tigers secured the commitment of 4-star talent Noah Batchelor, via Joe Tipton.
Breaking: 2022 four-star Noah Batchelor has committed to Memphis, he tells @On3Recruits.
Top-100 Prospect. pic.twitter.com/rPKZY3h9uz
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) July 4, 2021
A 6-6 forward from Ellicott City, Maryland, Batchelor is expected to suit up for Penny Hardaway's Tigers starting in the 2022 college basketball season. Batchelor is among the most sought-after small forwards in the nation. Ranked 92nd overall by ESPN, Batchelor has reportedly gotten offers from Power Six programs like George Washington, Clemson, Virginia Tech, Florida, Maryland, Georgetown, NC State, Marquette, Wake Forest, Nebraska, and Penn State, according to Jake Lieberman of ZagsBlog.
Batchelor seemed very high on Penny Hardaway and the Tigers as early as 2020, as he had the following to say about Memphis, per Lieberman.
“I really like Coach Hardaway and the whole coaching staff. They know how to send guys to the league.”
Batchelor isn't wrong. Hardaway and the Tigers have groomed James Wiseman and Precious Achiuwa into becoming NBA players.
It also seems that Batchelor's decision was heavily influenced by Larry Brown's addition to the Memphis's coaching staff.
“I chose Memphis because they really got something special going on over there. They just hired Larry Brown who was Allen Iverson’s head coach when he was on the 76ers. They are also getting more really great pieces together…
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) July 4, 2021
Penny Hardaway is entering his fourth season as head coach of the Tigers, and he's hoping that he can finally lead the program back to the National Tournament for the first time since 2014.
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