Penny Hardaway suspension: What are the terms and how game days will work in his absence

Penny Hardaway knows his suspension to start the 2023-24 season means he will not coach Memphis basketball's first three games.

What he will do instead, he's not quite sure yet.

“I don’t know," he told The Commercial Appeal at AAC Media Day. "I'm probably gonna be watching it (on TV). If I’m able to be in the building – which I don’t know if I will – that would be huge. If I can’t be at the games, obviously, I’ll be watching on TV, for sure.”

First things first: the Tigers have two exhibition games − against Lane College on Sunday (2 p.m.) and LeMoyne-Owen on Nov. 2 (7 p.m.). Both will be played at FedExForum and neither will be televised or livestreamed.

Then, the regular season tips off when Jackson State comes to Memphis on Nov. 6 (7 p.m.). That's when Hardaway's suspension begins. He will also miss the Tigers' road game against Missouri on Nov. 10 (8 p.m.) and a home game against Alabama State on Nov. 17 (7 p.m.).

Why the NCAA suspended Penny Hardaway

In June, the NCAA announced Hardaway would be suspended for recruiting violations committed in the fall of 2021.

NCAA rules state coaches are not allowed to visit a recruit until April of their junior year. According to the NCAA's decision, a former Memphis assistant coach visited an unnamed recruit in September 2021. Two weeks later, on Oct. 1, 2021, Hardaway also visited the same recruit.

NCAA rules require any in-person visits with recruits during the fall months of their junior year of high school to be made at the prospects' schools, not in their homes.

The terms of Penny Hardaway's suspension

The only time the terms of Hardaway's suspension apply are between 12:01 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. on Nov. 6, Nov. 10 and Nov. 17.

According to the NCAA, Hardaway is not allowed to perform any coaching nor recruiting activities on those days. He is not permitted to have any contact with current players, recruits or members of his coaching staff on those days − which includes, but is not limited to, team travel, practice, video study, recruiting and team meetings.

The only exceptions are Hardaway's sons − Jayden and Ashton, a senior guard and freshman wing for the Tigers. He is not prohibited from interacting with them as their father.

Hardaway also can not be present inside FedExForum for the Jackson State and Alabama State games, and he can not be present at Mizzou Arena on Nov. 10. Since the Tigers are expected to travel to Columbia, Mo., on Nov. 9, NCAA rules do not preclude Hardaway from accompanying the team there.

Also, the results of those three games will not count toward Hardaway's career record.

Memphis basketball's plan in Penny Hardaway's absence

With Hardaway out, Rick Stansbury will assume head coaching responsibilities for the first three games.

Stansbury − who has more than 20 seasons of head coaching experience at Mississippi State and Western Kentucky, where he won a combined 432 games − was hired as an assistant coach in April.

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Hardaway said the most important thing is consistency.

"I think he wants to know how I want it done so that the kids can stay on the same page," Hardaway said. "Obviously, he's going to use his expertise in how he handles certain situations. But we'll be on the same page with how it needs to be done."

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: What to expect when Memphis basketball Penny Hardaway serves suspension