Anfernee Deon "Penny" Hardaway (born July 18, 1971) is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the Memphis Tigers men's team in the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Hardaway played college basketball at Memphis and 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a four-time NBA All-Star and a three-time All-NBA Team member as a member of the Orlando Magic. He also played for the Phoenix Suns, New York Knicks and the Miami Heat.
Hardaway is the son of Fae Hardaway (born 1951) and Eddie Golden. The name Anfernee () was that of a schoolmate of his mother. When she left Memphis to work in Oakland in 1974, she left her son with her mother, Louise. His nickname came as a result of his grandmother's calling him "Pretty" with a southern drawl, thus sounding like "Penny". He wore #1 on his jersey in part because a penny is worth one cent. Hardaway's first love was football, but his grandmother did not want him to get hurt. He was raised in the Binghampton neighborhood of shotgun houses in Memphis. As a teenager, Hardaway refereed youth sports at the Memphis YMCA and played on its Jr. Olympic basketball team.
Hardaway played high school basketball at Treadwell High School in Memphis, where he averaged 36.6 points, 10.1 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 3.9 steals, and 2.8 blocks as a senior and was named Parade Magazine National High School player of the year. He finished his high school career with 3,039 points.
At Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis), Hardaway had to sit out the 1990–91 season with the Memphis State Tigers due to being academically ineligible according to the Proposition 48 regulation. His grades were so low that he was admitted to the university on a special exemption from University President Thomas G. Carpenter. He took the ACT five times with a maximum score of 17.2, with 17.5 being required to be eligible to play in college.
While he was sitting out, Hardaway was robbed at gunpoint outside his cousin LaMarcus Golden's house and was shot in his foot by a stray bullet, putting his career in jeopardy. He returned to school while rehabbing his foot when the bullet was removed; that year, he made the Dean's List.
In the summer of 1992 Hardaway was selected to the 1992 USA Basketball Developmental Team that scrimmaged daily against the 1992 Olympic Team. Hardaway was teammates with Chris Webber, Bobby Hurley, Jamal Mashburn, Rodney Rogers, Eric Montross, Grant Hill, and Allan Houston.
Hardaway returned for his junior season (1992–93) and bettered his numbers from the previous season. He averaged 22.8 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 6.4 apg, 2.4 spg, and 1.2 bpg. He accumulated two triple doubles. He was again named an All-American. He also was a finalist for the Naismith College Player of the Year and the John R. Wooden Award that are annually given the most outstanding player in college basketball.
Hardaway achieved a 3.4 cumulative GPA, but passed up his senior season to enter the 1993 NBA Draft. In 1994, Memphis State retired his jersey number, 25, Hardaway's number while playing for the Tigers. He returned to the University of Memphis in May 2003 and graduated with a bachelor's degree in professional studies, ten years after leaving school early to turn pro.
Hardaway was named #5 on the list of top 100 modern college point guards by collegehoopsnet.com. Additionally, he was a leading vote getter on ESPN Conference USA Silver Anniversary Team.
1993–94 season: All-Rookie honors
Hardaway was selected by the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the 1993 NBA draft (third pick overall), but was traded along with three future first-round picks to the Orlando Magic for the rights to first overall pick Chris Webber. The Magic's intent was to draft Webber and pair him with Shaquille O'Neal until Hardaway – whose desire was to play alongside O'Neal – requested a second workout to show why he should be their pick. Two days before the draft, Hardaway participated in a pick-up basketball game with several Magic players and local talent and impressed the organization enough to make the draft day trade. He would sign a 13-year, $65 million contract, which contained an escape clause after his rookie season which would allow him to go into restricted free agency.
Having played point guard in college while drawing comparisons to Magic Johnson, he started out the season at the shooting guard position as he learned how to run an NBA point from veteran Scott Skiles. By mid-season he took over point guard duties from Skiles. He immediately made an impact on the league, winning the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award at the inaugural Schick Rookie Game. Hardaway helped the Magic to their first playoff berth and first 50-win season. He averaged 16 points, 6.6 assists, 5.4 rebounds per game while his 190 steals ranked 6th in the league. He recorded his first career triple double on April 15 when he registered 14 points, 12 assists, and 11 rebounds against the Boston Celtics. For his efforts he was named to the NBA All-Rookie first team and was the runner-up for Rookie of the Year to Chris Webber.
1994–95 season: First All-Star and NBA Finals appearance
Following the 1994 season, Hardaway would exercise his escape clause, and would not re-sign until mid-October, on a 9-year, $72 million contract, which again had an option, this time after the fifth year of the deal. During the 1994–95 NBA season, the Magic won a franchise record 57 games while Hardaway averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game. He was named a starter in his first NBA All-Star Game and was named All-NBA First Team. The highlight of the playoff run was the second-round defeat of the Chicago Bulls. Along with Shaquille O'Neal, he led his team to the NBA Finals, where they were swept by the Houston Rockets. Despite the sweep Hardaway averaged 25.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 8 assists in the series, while shooting 50% from the field.
1995–96 season: 2nd All-NBA First Team selection and surgery
An injury to star teammate Shaquille O'Neal at the start of the 1995–96 NBA season forced Hardaway to take on more of the scoring load during the first few weeks of the season. He responded by leading the Magic to a 17–5 start. He was named NBA Player of the Month for November by averaging 27.0 points, 6.5 assists, 5.8 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 1 block per game. He was named a starter in the NBA All-Star Game for the second consecutive season while leading the Magic to a franchise record 60 wins. For the season he was named to the All-NBA First Team for the second consecutive year while averaging 21.7 points, 7.1 assists and 4.3 rebounds and capturing 166 steals which was good for 5th in the league. He also finished third in MVP voting. Hardaway was again the only player in the NBA who averaged at least 20 points and five assists and shot 50 percent on field goals during the regular season. The Magic's playoff run ended in the Eastern Conference Finals to the eventual champion Chicago Bulls. In the 12-game playoff run Hardaway averaged 23.3 points, 6 assists, and 4.7 rebounds.
Hardaway later admitted his first serious knee injury was sustained in a 1996 playoff game against Detroit when Joe Dumars hit him in the back of his knee but he played through the pain. He then said he underwent surgery during the off-season and felt that the injury had robbed him of his explosiveness.
1996–97 season: Olympic gold medal and franchise player