ESPN Analyst's Joke About Memphis Tigers Player's Age Touches Nerve For Hardaway

ESPN's Kendrick Perkins found himself in a difficult spot Saturday when he made an ageist remark about Oklahoma's Serge Ibaka. This comment hit home for Memphis coach Penny Hardaway, who quickly took action to address the matter.

During the offseason, the Tigers lost several players to the transfer portal, leaving the team lacking experienced personnel. It's an unfortunate situation for them and they are currently facing it head-on.

DeAndre Williams

Williams, a senior guard for the Memphis Tigers, is one of the top players in the American Athletic Conference. After 27 games, he ranks sixth in scoring (17.3 points per game), fourth in rebounding (7.9) and second in 3-point field goal percentage (54%).

He leads the team in assists, blocks and steals. A big man who can play inside or outside, his shooting touch from long range is impressive.

His most valuable trait, however, is his knack for scoring. Though not a high-volume offensive player, he can create some opportunities when open and has averaged around.500 on pullups and floaters. While not particularly fast or accurate with the ball, his instincts and toolset should allow him to succeed at the next level.

Williams revealed to The Commercial Appeal in a recent interview that it can be difficult for him to ignore the constant taunts and jeers about his age he hears inside FedExForum during home games this season. Nonetheless, he strives to remain focused and keep working hard despite these setbacks.

Another area he must improve upon is his foul rate, which stands at an alarming 5.9 per 40 minutes. While he has made improvements since returning to the starting lineup, this issue still needs to be addressed.

Additionally, his lack of elite stopper abilities on defense and an ideal set of tools as a center limit his effectiveness. Furthermore, he tends to make turnovers and is not as efficient at creating offense as his teammates are prove.

It all adds up to an increasingly frustrating situation for players and coaches alike - one which appears unlikely to change anytime soon. At a time when sexism and racism are becoming increasingly commonplace in sports, it's particularly troubling to witness someone like Deandre Ayton being treated with such disrespect when he has the rare chance of becoming an All-Star player. While this issue cannot be fixed overnight, it must be addressed before Ayton's career can progress further forward.

Kendrick Perkins

ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins is a former NBA player who has since blossomed into one of the most beloved and provocative analysts worldwide. After 14 seasons in the league, he helped several teams win titles, such as the Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder.

Since retiring from basketball, he has been a staple on some of the network's most popular shows, such as First Take, Get Up and NBA Today. Known for his charismatic personality and provocative commentary, he continues to inspire viewers with his insightful opinions.

Perkins, a former six foot ten (two meters) center, has been an NBA player for fourteen years, spending time with teams such as Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder, Cleveland Cavaliers and New Orleans Pelicans. During his time playing for Boston he won an NBA championship with them in 2008.

As a top recruit in high school, Perkins decided to forgo college and go straight into the NBA. He made his professional debut with the Boston Celtics and quickly established himself as an indispensable member of their team.

His career hasn't always been smooth sailing. When he was young, his mother was shot and killed and his father abandoned him to move to New Zealand; thus, he was raised by his grandparents in Beaumont, Texas.

Perkins led Ozen High School to four consecutive district championships and a state title during his high school career, average 27.5 points, 16.4 rebounds, and 7.8 blocks per game as a senior.

In addition to his prominent role with the Celtics, Perkins is an effective defensive force. He's a good rebounder and has an eye for finishing inside with strong hands.

He's an impressive shot blocker and very athletic for his size. Additionally, he can shoot the three-pointer with ease.

On Monday, ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins posted a clip on Twitter in which he made the controversial statement that Oklahoma City forward Serge Ibaka was likely much older than his listed 21 years. Ibaka wasn't amused and responded to the joke with an extended rant on his Twitter account.

Though Perkins has made mistakes during his NBA career, it's unfortunate that this incident has become the source of so much controversy. Ibaka already had to contend with false allegations regarding his true age and is obviously offended by these comments from a former teammate. They have had their disagreements on court and on social media over the years, but this is the first time they've reached public scandal status.

ESPN

ESPN is a global sports media and entertainment company owned by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Its flagship property, ESPN, is the world's largest television network for men's and women's sports as well as other programs. ESPN broadcasts more than 65 sports games daily across North America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

ESPN was established in 1979 by New England sports announcer Bill Rasmussen as a basic cable network, but quickly expanded due to lucrative advertising contracts. By the 1980s, it had evolved into an expansive network of regional channels and began producing live sporting events. Nowadays, ESPN is America's dominant sports network broadcasting a variety of sporting events such as football, baseball, basketball and hockey - from football and baseball games to hockey rinks!

Chris Berman is ESPN's most renowned employee, having joined them only one month after launch. Since then, Berman has become one of America's beloved sportscasters and been recognized by both his peers and numerous organizations for his exceptional contributions to sports broadcasting - including induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, accolades from peers, and recognition from countless organizations worldwide.

He was instrumental in the development of many of Netflix's original series, including Inside the NFL, Inside the NBA and Quest for the Stanley Cup. Furthermore, he collaborated with some of sports' biggest stars to provide viewers a rare look into their professional lives.

Since his tenure at ESPN, Berman has made a lasting impact on sports broadcasting and earned himself an admirable reputation for providing thrilling content to viewers. His infectious enthusiasm, expertise and wit have cemented him as a staple on the network; his work is respected by sports enthusiasts nationwide.

ESPN also has a paid subscription platform called ESPN+ in addition to its main television service. This offers live and on-demand content from all of ESPN's platforms, such as the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MLS and NCAA. In addition to many original series found on ESPN, there's other sports and news programming available too.

The Tigers

ESPN analyst Dave Adams made a joke that DeAndre Williams, from Memphis, should "be on a team in the future". While it seemed like an innocent comment, Hardaway's response revealed the true extent of Williams' talent: while his delayed timeline may have compromised his chances at attending college basketball programs, this has had an impact on other students as well.

After 27 games, he is sixth in scoring (17 points per game), fourth in rebounding (7.9) and second in 3-point section % (54%). Additionally, his 1.9 assists and 2.0 steals rank him among the league leaders; furthermore, he averages 22.5 minutes per game on average.

Williams is an outstanding student-athlete for the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, where he holds numerous records including being their all-time leader in rebounds, leading the conference in field goals made, free throws attempted and blocks.

Williams' mastery of ball handling and passing has earned him numerous accolades, including the American Athletic Conference Player of the Year award last season. As one of the highest-rated and sought-after players in America, he has garnered many national recruiting honors.

Williams' college journey was lengthy, but he made an effortless transition into professional basketball. Drafted by Orlando Magic in 1993, he has played for multiple teams over 14 seasons, averaging 22.8 points, 8.25 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 2.4 steals per season throughout that span.

Though the Tigers have had difficulty in recent years, they have managed to win 20+ games four times since Hardaway took over as head coach. He also seems to have attracted some highly-rated recruits to his program.

Despite a slow start this season, the Tigers remain in the Associated Press poll and have won 10 straight games. Led by an exciting young roster, the Tigers hope to continue their upward trajectory this year.

The Tigers have a storied baseball legacy that dates back to their Western League days. They won pennants in 1894, 1907 and 1908 and finished as runners-ups in both 1934 and 1968 in the World Series. The success of this team could be attributed to veteran leadership as well as an experienced core of players - led by sluggers such as Gehringer and Greenberg - along with an experienced pitching staff that included Joe Bunning and Frank Lary.