Ashton Hardaway will return to Memphis basketball for the 2025-26 season, he announced on social media Saturday.
The 6-foot-8 forward played for Tigers coach Penny Hardaway (his father) as a true freshman in 2023-24, then transferred to Saint Mary's. He played in 33 games for the Gaels (9.6 minutes per game), averaging 2.1 points and 1.2 rebounds. He shot 31% (on 13-of-42 shooting) from the 3-point line.
In his first season at Memphis, Hardaway averaged 2.3 points a game and connected on 33.3% of his 3-point attempts.
Hardaway marks the second public commitment from an incoming transfer for the Tigers this offseason. Last week, Temple guard Quante Berry announced he was headed to Memphis.
Penny Hardaway has at least now has at least six scholarships to fill. Three players from the 2024-25 roster — consensus All-American PJ Haggerty, point guard Dante Harris and forward Bouna Kebe (who redshirted this season) — are eligible to return for the 2025-26 season, while incoming freshman Daniel Vieira-Tuck and junior college transfer Felipe Patino are presently verbally committed to Memphis.
Hardaway's return marks the second time a player has left the Tigers only to eventually come back. Tyler Harris began his career at Memphis, then transferred to Iowa State. Harris returned to the Tigers for one season before leaving to finish his collegiate career at South Florida.
Hardaway made a nice splash early on during his first go round at Memphis, scoring 17 points (hitting five 3-pointers) in a win over Michigan at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas. But he never scored more than 8 points in another game with the Tigers.
The California native's highest-scoring game at Saint Mary's came in a Jan. 29 win at Santa Clara when he finished with 9 points.
The deadline for Division I players to enter the transfer portal is April 22. Players who enter after that date would need a waiver to be eligible for competition in 2025-26.
While players can commit to a school at any time, the regular signing period begins April 16 and ends May 21.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com, follow him @munzly on X, and sign up for the
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