It was reported on Sunday that Julius Thedford and William Whorton will return for the 2026-27 season. The Daily Memphis’s Parth Upadhyaya was first to report the news, and Thedford confirmed it by reposting it on his Instagram story.
Eight players have eligibility remaining for next season, and it appears that all eight have an opportunity to return. During his press conference last week, Hardaway stated that he had met with all eight guys about a path for them to return to next season’s roster, but he set a deadline for a decision by Friday, March 20.
There was no news on Friday about any decisions, but it appears players and their agents are starting to release that information.
Thedford transferred into Memphis after spending his freshman season at Western Kentucky, and he played a big role as a sophomore. The Memphis native made 17 starts, and he averaged 8.4 points, five rebounds and 1.1 steals in 20.4 minutes per game.
Thedford showed the ability to be a scoring threat but also affect the game if the shot wasn’t falling. The sophomore led the team in rebounding and finished fifth in scoring, despite missing five games with injury.
Thedford has two years of eligibility remaining.
Whorton joined the Tigers’ program after spending two seasons at South Dakota State, and he appeared in 19 games and made four starts. The Milwaukee native averaged 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds in 8.8 minutes per game.
Whorton’s role was extremely limited, and he will likely serve a similar role next year. The 6-foot-8 forward played with a lot of energy when he got on the court, and it’ll be interesting to see how he develops this offseason under Hardaway and a new staff.
Whorton served a redshirt during his first season with the Jackrabbits, and he will have two seasons of eligibility remaining.
Quante Berry, Ashton Hardaway, Arop Arop, Curtis Givens III, Simon Majok and Aaron Bradshaw all have the opportunity to return but have yet to announce a decision one way or the other.