Memphis basketball still has business to take care of this season. There is the regular-season finale against South Florida at FedExForum on Friday (8 p.m., ESPN2) when they could clinch the
AAC championship outright. Then, the Tigers (25-5, 15-2 AAC) head West for the AAC tournament at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, where they will be the No. 1 seed for the first time. After that, Memphis will make its
NCAA tournament return. Once it's all said and done, though, Memphis coach Penny Hardaway will set his focus on managing a roster that will undergo some turnover. Just how many comings and goings there will be remains to be seen, but here is what we know for sure at this point. There will be at least four departures. Tyrese Hunter, Colby Rogers, Nicholas Jourdain and Moussa Cisse have exhausted their eligibility. Hunter, Rogers and Jourdain have started every game this season, while Cisse has started 16 games and averages the sixth-most minutes. Dain Dainja's status is slightly up in the air. The Tigers' starting center does not have any eligibility left beyond this season. But he could petition the NCAA for one more season, although there is no guarantee it would be approved. "I'm not sure. I'm looking into it a little bit more," Dainja said recently. "Still some things I've got to clear up from my time at Baylor."
PJ Haggerty
The 6-foot-3 guard, who is the Tigers' leading scorer, has two more seasons to play in college if he chooses.
PJ Carter
Carter came to Memphis under the impression it would be his final season at the collegiate level. But that may have changed. According to an NCAA memo issued in December, it granted a waiver that extends an extra year of eligibility in 2025-26 to athletes who previously "competed at a non-NCAA school for one or more years" and otherwise would have exhausted their NCAA eligibility following the 2024-25 season. Carter spent one season at Georgia Highlands College, so he could return for one more season.
Dante Harris
The 6-foot guard's career began at Georgetown in 2020-21. All Division I athletes who were eligible to play that season qualify for the NCAA's COVID-19 eligibility extension, giving them six seasons to play five. Harris spent two seasons at Georgetown, redshirted in 2022-23, and played for Virginia last season. He began this season with the
Cavaliers before transferring to Memphis in December, giving him one more season to play.
Baraka Okojie
The 6-1 backup guard played his freshman season at George Mason. He transferred to Memphis last offseason, which leaves him with two seasons of collegiate eligibility.
Jared Harris
A 6-2 freshman guard who has played sparingly this season, Harris has three seasons of eligibility remaining.
Damarien Yates
The 6-5 forward's career began at a junior college. But, unlike Carter, he is not eligible for the NCAA's blanket junior college waiver since this is not his final season of Division I eligibility. Yates has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
Bouna Kebe
The 6-7 forward redshirted this season with the Tigers. After playing for separate junior colleges as a freshman and sophomore, Kebe has two seasons of eligibility left.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at [email protected], follow him @munzly on X, and sign up for the Memphis Basketball Insider text group.
