Jordan Brown meets with Memphis basketball team about potential return | Sources
WICHITA, Kan. — Jordan Brown made an attempt to rejoin the Memphis basketball team ahead of Sunday's 112-86 win at Wichita State, but his future with the program remains uncertain, multiple athletic department officials with knowledge of the situation told The Commercial Appeal.
Sources were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about Brown. Attempts to reach Brown on Sunday were not immediately returned.
Brown — a 6-foot-11 transfer from Louisiana who left the Tigers after their Dec. 2 loss at Ole Miss — returned to Memphis last week and attended a players-only meeting at the Laurie-Walton Family Basketball Center on Friday. Details about the meeting are largely unclear, but sources said the players initially balked at Brown’s return.
Brown was not in Wichita, Kansas, for Sunday’s game.
That does not mean the matter has been resolved, according to Memphis coach Penny Hardaway. When asked by The Commercial Appeal about Brown and Friday’s meeting, Hardaway indicated a reunion still could happen.
“I don’t think it’s out of the picture, to be honest with you,” he said Sunday.
Hardaway declined to discuss specifics of the meeting between Brown and the rest of the Tigers.
“But I don’t think it’s over,” he said. “I think the guys just have to get with Jordan. We’re giving them some mental time and see where it goes. I think that’s just premature from hearing from them.”
Since Brown’s departure — after decreasing production and dwindling playing time — the No. 13 Tigers (15-2, 4-0 AAC) have won 10 consecutive games.
Jahvon Quinerly, whose all-conference caliber play in recent weeks is a big reason why, told The Commercial Appeal he didn’t know what to think when Brown, his former roommate, showed up in Memphis last week.
“I was just getting ready for practice,” he said. “I think everybody was just surprised to see him.”
Quinerly declined to discuss what might happen next.
“I’m just, you know, trying to stay focused on the guys that are here, and I just want to keep winning,” he said.
Prior to his departure, Brown was averaging 6.8 points and 4.3 rebounds with three blocks and three steals in six games. For weeks, Hardaway would say only that Brown's absence was the result of an unspecified illness. But in recent days, he indicated Brown had not been totally written off.
"Jordan Brown is still a part of the basketball program until I hear otherwise," Hardaway said after the Tigers' win over SMU on Jan. 7.
That message was consistent with how Hardaway addressed the subject on Dec. 19.
MEMPHIS BASKETBALL: Tigers smash Wichita State with second-half dominance. Here are 5 takeaways
"We have not turned the page, so I really don't know," he said. "I don't know what that means for Jordan."
Since Brown left, senior center Malcolm Dandridge has averaged 7.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 0.9 blocks per game. The Tigers also have added 6-10 forward Nae'Qwan Tomlin during that time. In six games, Tomlin, a transfer out of Kansas State, has scored 10.8 points per game and 5.7 boards.
Memphis’ next game is Thursday (6 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2) against USF at FedExForum.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Jordan Brown, Memphis basketball team meet about potential return
