Is PJ Haggerty leaving Memphis basketball for Kansas State? Know about his 2025 NBA Draft withdrawal

PJ Haggerty has decided to leave Memphis basketball and will not enter the NBA Draft. He is now committed to Kansas State, as per ESPN's Jonathan Givony.

Updated on: May 27, 2025, 24:12:09 IST

By Shweta Kukreti

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PJ Haggerty will not play basketball for Memphis any more. According to ESPN's Jonathan Givony, the consensus second-team All-American has walked away from the NBA Draft and committed to Kansas State.

PJ Haggerty withdraws from 2025 NBA Draft (Getty Images via AFP)

Haggerty spent a season with coach Penny Hardaway's Tigers, and helped them capture the AAC tournament and regular-season titles. He won the AAC Player of the Year award for Memphis after averaging 21.8 points per game.

The former Tulsa Golden Hurricane and TCU Horned Frog, however, is scheduled to play for coach Jerome Tang in 2025–2026. Haggerty never made it onto the mock drafts of any major media publication.

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Haggerty wanted an NIL deal worth $4 million

Earlier in May, Haggerty did well at the NBA Draft Combine. He nailed 73% of his shots during solo drills on May 13 and finished among the top five shooters at the combine.

Haggerty then scored 18 points and pulled down seven rebounds in a preseason on May 14 at Chicago's Wintrust Arena, helping his side win.

On April 17, Haggerty logged into the transfer portal. According to reports, the Texas native expressed his intention to play most of his minutes at point guard and was seeking at least $4 million in NIL compensation for the 2025–26 campaign. Haggerty started the offense most of the time in 2024–25, but he mostly lined up at shooting guard for Memphis.

"We've seen what sort of point guard he is," The Sporting News' Mike DeCourcy tweeted on X. “Tremendous player. Not a high-level college point guard.”

As they awaited Haggerty's decision, Hardaway made important progress in reassembling the Tigers' team. Eight of Memphis' twelve new recruits are guards: Felipe Patino, Daniel Vieira-Tuck, Zachary Davis, Curtis Givens III, Julius Thedford, Sincere Parker, Dug McDaniel, and Quante Berry. In addition, the Tigers have added big man Aaron Bradshaw and wings Hasan Abdul-Hakim, Ashton Hardaway, and Mason Matthews.

Dain Dainja, an all-conference big man for Memphis, has asked the NCAA for a waiver so he can play one more season.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shweta Kukreti
Shweta Kukreti has over 8 years of experience in covering Indian and world politics. She joined the Hindustan Times in 2024 and is primarily assigned to the US desk. She currently works as Deputy Chief Content Producer and reports on a wide range of topics, including US politics, immigration issues (especially H-1B visa) and major global events. Shweta strongly emphasizes team operations, which encompasses monitoring news, delegating tasks, editing, developing comprehensive coverage strategies, and crafting engaging, and data-informed narratives. She received the Digi Star Award at the Hindustan Times within a year of joining for her broad coverage of US politics. In 2025, she earned both a promotion and a redesignation, a significant achievement recognising her contributions and the strong value she brings to the team. She has previously worked with the Indian Express, HTDS, ANI and Republic World. Seniors in all the media organisations recognised her work. Regarding education, she earned a BA (Hons.) in Political Science and a master's degree from Delhi University, and she pursued a PG Diploma in English Journalism from the Indian Institution of Mass Communication (IIMC). She also holds a diploma in Women's Empowerment and Development from IGNOU University and a French certification course from Alliance Française de Delhi. If not working, you can find her exploring the hills and engaging in adventurous activities in Rishikesh and Himachal Pradesh. She loves to play badminton, volleyball, and chess, and spend time with her friends and family. She also enjoys spiritual activities.Read More

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