MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Penny Hardaway grabs forward Tyreek Smith out of the portal for his sixth recruit this offseason, as reported by Jon Rothstein.
The 6-8 big man transfers to Memphis from conference rival Southern Methodist University. Smith played in all 33 games for SMU last season, averaging 8.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks (third in the AAC) per game. He also shot FGs at 58.4%, which ranked him fifth in the AAC last season.
Before his time as a Mustang, Smith began his college career at Texas Tech, playing one season and redshirting the other with an injury. He also spent two years at Oklahoma State.
Smith entered the portal April 25 and is ranked as the 285th prospect in the portal by 247Sports. This season at Memphis will be Smith's last year of college eligibility.
With all but one scholarship player from 2023-24 using up their eligibility or entering the transfer portal or the NBA Draft, Hardaway this offseason has been forced to rebuild the roster.
With the addition of Smith, Hardaway still has five remaining scholarship spots to work with for Memphis' 2024-25 roster.
This offseason Hardaway has nabbed Tyrese Hunter (G), PJ Haggerty (G), Colby Rogers (G), Baraka Okojie (G), Dain Dainja (F) and now Smith (F) out of the transfer portal. The Tigers will also have freshman signee Jared Harris (G) next season, and Nicholas Jourdain (F) is expected to return and play for the Tigers.
If David Jones decides to opt out of the 2024 NBA draft before May 29 and return to Memphis, he will take up one of those five remaining spots.