MEMPHIS, Tenn. — While the NCAA Men's Final Four is days away, Penny Hardaway and the Memphis Tigers are already at work with their offseason plans, with the country's top transfer guard in PJ Haggerty announcing he's coming to play for the Tigers.
Haggerty, who was the American Athletic Conference's Freshman of the Year for Tulsa, averaged 21.2 points per game in 2023-2024 - good for 15th-best in the nation - while adding 5.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. His points per game were second in the AAC behind only Memphis' David Jones (21.8).
He gave the Tigers a run in their only matchup in January, 2024, scoring a game-high 27 points, adding eight rebounds and four assists.
Haggerty joins the Tigers with three years of college eligibility remaining, a departure from Penny Hardaway's previous transfer strategy of targeting top upperclassmen.
He's the top guard in On3.com's transfer portal rankings, and the No. 2 overall transfer in the country. The move was announced on Instagram and shared to his account Thursday. Haggerty chose Memphis over Texas, Kansas State and Providence, he told On3.com.
Haggerty joins the Tigers following a disappointing end to the 2023-2024 season, which saw Memphis go from being the No. 10-ranked team in the country, to being bounced in the first round of the AAC Tournament, failing to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2021.
He's poised to be an immediate scoring threat from the point guard position, which could prove crucial if David Jones decides not to return to the team.
Haggerty could prove to be another effective transfer to play point guard, similar to Kendric Davis in 2022-2023.