MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis men’s basketball coach Penny Hardaway says he is willing to pay up to $2.6 million of his own money this year toward the program’s revenue-sharing total so the Tigers can field a competitive team, though athletic director Ed Scott says no check has been written.
Hardaway, entering his ninth season as the Tigers’ head coach, discussed the contribution during American Conference media day. His salary this season is $2.9 million, so the pledge amounts to most of his annual pay. Hardaway said the university did not ask him to make the contribution.
It was initially reported on Monday that Hardaway had written a $2.6 million check that helped land Serbian big man Nemanja Popovic and Florida Atlantic transfer Maxim Logue. One day after Hardaway described a check to help fund the 2026-27 roster, Scott went on a radio show to clarify that it had not happened.
Memphis is welcoming nine newcomers through the transfer portal in 2026, led by forward Rihards Vavers from Washington State and point guard Brandin Cummings from Pitt. Popovic played professionally in Poland a season ago.
The stakes are high. The Tigers are coming off a 13-19 season, their worst record since Hardaway arrived in 2018, and they are aiming to return to the NCAA Tournament and win a game there for just the second time under him. Memphis won the NIT in 2021 and reached the Round of 32 in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
Hardaway, a Memphis native, is under contract until April 2028. He has said he did not want to fail two years in a row because he knows what that would mean for his job.
The Tigers play home games at FedExForum, the downtown arena at 191 Beale St that seats 17,794, where Hardaway’s rebuilt roster will try to turn the investment into wins.
