Heartbreak: Memphis Tigers greatest player of all time has terminated his contract to sign a new contract.

Heartbreak: Memphis Tigers greatest player of all time has terminated his contract to sign a new contract.

DeAndre Williams, 27, was not granted a waiver to play basketball for Memphis for another season.

The oldest player in Division I during the previous season, Williams was vying for a sixth year of eligibility.

Reactions from DeAndre Williams during a game
March 17, 2023, Columbus, Ohio—During the second half of the Memphis Tigers’ game versus the Florida Atlantic Owls in the first round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena, DeAndre Williams, #12 of the team, reacts. (Image courtesy of Dylan Buell/Getty Images.)

“We are extremely disappointed a waiver for an additional year of eligibility for DeAndre Williams was denied, which came following a request for reconsideration of the initial denial and then an appeal,” Memphis athletics stated in a statement on Friday.

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According to the Associated Press, Williams was pursuing a sixth year after serving as a year-in-residence at Evansville during his freshman year in 2018–19.

“We felt the evidence about academic misadvisement prior to his initial collegiate enrollment that was uncovered and provided to the NCAA was sufficient to grant this waiver, and we also strongly believed the depth of additional information shared with the NCAA on an ongoing basis would be on DeAndre’s side,” the statement from Memphis athletics continued.

“Unfortunately, the NCAA came to a different conclusion following several months of back and forth. For the past two and a half years, DeAndre has made significant contributions to our men’s basketball program, and he will always be a Memphis Tiger. However, we are eagerly anticipating a thrilling season on our men’s basketball team’s court.”

 

DeAndre Williams triumphs over Cincinnati and celebrates.
On January 22, 2023, in Cincinnati, Ohio, DeAndre Williams, #12 of the Memphis Tigers, celebrates following his team’s 75-68 victory over the Cincinnati Bearcats at Fifth Third Arena. (Getty Images/Dylan Buell))

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Williams played his first collegiate basketball season in 2019–20, averaging 15.2 points per game in 18 games with Evansville. After transferring, he spent the next three years averaging more than 27 minutes per game in Memphis.

Following a season in which he averaged 17.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.9 assists, Williams was named to the first team of the AAC.

Following the Tigers’ first-round NCAA Tournament loss to FAU in 2023, it seemed as though Williams was completed his collegiate basketball career. Williams, his mother informed The Commercial Appeal, was “not coming back.”