What Nolley does for Hardaway’s Memphis lineup
Positionless basketball is a concept Penny Hardaway has been striving to instill at Memphis since he was hired in 2018.
Each season since, he has gotten his Tigers closer to that goal, which essentially boils down to grouping the most versatile players together as much as possible. Which is precisely why last week's news, that Virginia Tech transfer Landers Nolley II will be eligible to play this season, is so welcome. Adding the 6foot-7 Nolley, who earned ACC Allfreshman honors last season with 15.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists a game, to the mix gives Hardaway another nifty weapon.
So, what does Nolley's availability do for the Tigers' lineup? Memphis wants its lineups to consist of four interchangeable parts, with the ability to switch one through four at any given moment. The fifth spot in the Tigers' system will, more often than not, be reserved for the traditional big man role.
Here is what Memphis' starting lineup could look like on opening day (whenever that may be) – keeping in mind the team is still awaiting word from the NCAA on whether Evansville transfer Deandre Williams will join Nolley in being granted immediate eligibility.
Boogie Ellis
The sophomore started 26 games last season, handling much of the ball-handling duties from the traditional point guard position. Ellis, who averaged 8.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists a game, is in line to take on similar responsibilities in 2020-21.
Backup candidate: Alex Lomax, Da
mion Baugh
Landers Nolley II
One of the primary reasons Nolley wanted out of Blacksburg, Va., is because he felt he couldn't reach his full potential playing under the basket the way he did for the Hokies.
Hardaway has raved about the redshirt sophomore's shooting ability since he transferred to Memphis in April. And he plans to take advantage of it. But Nolley's role will change (much like everyone else) multiple times throughout the course of even one game.
“I'm going to play him all over the floor,” Hardaway said. “From the guard position to the forward position to the small-ball position. We're going to mix it up.”
Backup candidate: Lester Quinones
D.J. Jeffries
The former Olive Branch (Miss.) star was arguably the best player on the floor for the Tigers last season not named Precious Achiuwa. Before going down with a knee injury 19 games in, Jeffries was averaging 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds a game.
Hardaway said recently Jeffries' knee will be at full strength this season, and Jeffries is expected to take a big step forward as a sophomore.
Backup candidate: Quinones, Jayden
Hardaway
Lance Thomas
The redshirt junior was among the Tigers who were victimized by circumstances beyond their control and saw their production suffer as a result. When James Wiseman was out of the picture after three games and Malcolm Dandridge was pressed into action at less than 100 percent, Hardaway had to do something.
Part of that was playing Thomas closer to the basket than he's suited for. Now that Memphis has beefed up its depth inside (Moussa Cisse, a healthy Dandridge, Isaiah Stokes and Ahmad Rand), Thomas should be allowed to do more of what he does better.
Note: If Williams is eligible this season, he could vulture the starting job away from Thomas.
Backup candidate: Stokes, Dandridge
Moussa Cisse
Hardaway calls Cisse the best rim protector in college basketball. While that remains to be seen, he's certainly the linchpin in the Tigers' whole positionless concept.
With a dominant presence under the basket, it frees everyone else on the floor up to be more active, switch more frequently, ignite the break, handle the ball and distribute it freely.
Backup candidate: Rand
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.