These @SUVtv streams have kept me sane and keyed in over the past 6 weeks, so thank you to the folks involved with these. Also, watching some of these 2021-2023 prospects after being out of the gym during lockdown has me thinking about our "local vs. national" podcast episode.

The idea that Penny Hardaway and Memphis need to "refocus locally" is a complete fools gold. Yes, it looks and sounds great, but it's not consistently the highest level available. LEVELS, folks. LEVELS! Moving from class to class, the numbers don't support this.

There is neither an appropriate distribution of positional need nor the quantity/quality necessary to make local prioritization sustainable. Yes, there have been great players come out of the city of Memphis. And yes, there are some nice players in the future.

But to reach the level that Penny Hardaway wants to reach, he has to be given free reign to go get whoever he feels best suits his system & the needs on his roster. There could be 3 Memphis kids ranked between 100-200 that are good players & will go on to earn a scholarship...

But that doesn't mean they make sense for the University of Memphis roster or system. And Penny should never be held hostage by that. Since 2000, only 17 players from Memphis, TN have been drafted. 2 of those 17 never played college basketball.

Of the remaining 15, 4 played and finished as seniors at the MM level, 3 of whom went the JUCO route first. 5 of the 11 went out of town for college. Only 6 prospects from the city of Memphis since the year 2000 played at the University of Memphis AND ended up in the NBA draft.

19 draft classes. 6 NBA prospects. You can't build a national championship contending team with that base being your priority. Yes, you need a mix of 4/3/2 year guys with elite-level talent that has 1-and-done potential. And you can find some of those guys locally. But...

The point is that Penny Hardaway (or any future Memphis coach) should be given the freedom to simply GO GET WHO THEY FEEL IS THE BEST PLAYER TO GIVE THEM A CHANCE TO WIN. Could he focus locally? Sure. And that's great if that's his evaluation. Could he priorize regionally? Sure!

Or could he default to trying to cherry-pick guys on a national level from different areas? ABSOLUTELY. And those choices should be his and his alone. No single prospect or narrative should attempt to strong-arm that decision.

And you can try to make the argument that Wiseman/Baugh/Cisse fit "local prioritization," but they aren't city of Memphis guys. Between the 3 of them, they averaged 1 year of HS basketball in Shelby county per player. All three moved to Memphis prior to their senior seasons.

Penny is a smart guy. He's delivered on reinjecting enthusiasm to the Memphis fan base. He revived Memphis fan support/ticket sales, which was super timely given that COVID-19 was on the horizon. With that (and the NY6 bowl payout), Memphis athletics has avoided dire straits.

Memphis' defense is elite. Cut out turnovers in the first 5 seconds of the shot clock and the offense is right there with the defense. Penny knows what he does and doesn't need for his roster. He's no dummy.

TL;DR: Let Penny be Penny. He's a Memphis guy. He knows what local players do and don't have to offer. He's lived it on every level. If he wants to go all-in on a Memphis prospect, he's shown he can deliver. If HE chooses to go out of state? FINE!!! But it's not your call.

P.S. I know some will want to label me as a hater for this take. And that's fine. This is my opinion and my opinion only. We can discuss it. I'd love to have meaningful dialogue if you disagree.