While former NBAer Brandon Roy just earned Naismith National HS Coach of the Year after leading his Nathan Hale HS to a perfect 29-0 season on its way to claiming the state title (and top spot in the national rankings) in his first season as a head coach, another former NBA All-Star now coaching high school ball also led his squad to the state title this season. Penny Hardaway’s East Memphis High claimed the Class AAA state title on Saturday when his Mustangs defeated Southwind HS, 65-45. It’s actually East Memphis’ second consecutive state title after the Mustangs also went all the way last year in Hardaway’s first full year as head coach.
So great to see that the 2016-17 season has brought us former NBA All-Stars getting involved with the next generation of young hoopers in such a successful and impactful way.
More from The Commercial Appeal below:
It’s official. There’s nothing Chandler Lawson can’t do.
The sophomore scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to win tournament Most Valuable Player honors Saturday at the Murphy Center as East defeated Southwind 65-45 to win the TSSAA BlueCross AAA state championship game for the second consecutive season. The Mustangs (35-3) are the first team since White Station in 2003-2004 to win consecutive titles in the state’s largest classification.
Lawson basically had double-doubles in each game of the tournament — he had nine rebounds in Friday’s semifinal victory over Oak Ridge — and celebrated East’s victory with a cartwheel, pulling it off about as effortlessly as a 6-9 human being can.
And now according to MaxPreps, Penny’s team could end up with some pretty high expectations come next season:
A lot could happen between now and next season, but expect head coach Penny Hardaway’s Memphis East (Memphis, Tenn.) squad to be a strong candidate for preseason national No. 1 in 2017-18.
