Former 5-star recruit Emoni Bates announced via his Instagram on Saturday that he was entering the transfer portal after one season with the Tigers.
Bates averaged 9.7 points and 3.3 rebounds per game on 38.6% shooting in 18 games for the Tigers.
“I’d like to thank Coach Penny, my teammates, and the entire coaching staff at the University of Memphis for giving me the opportunity to be a Tiger. Thank you Tiger Nation for embracing me and all of you who supported our team throughout this season. With that being said, I have decided to enter the transfer portal,” Bates said on Instagram.
Bates, originally committed to Michigan State as the No. 1 recruit in the 2022 class, but chose to decommit and reclassify to enter college a year early. As 247Sports’ No. 5 recruit in 2021, Bates chose to attend Memphis last year at just 17 years old.
He missed 12 games with a back injury but returned to the lineup to play in Memphis’ two NCAA tournament games, scoring eight total points in the two contests.
In the 18 games Bates played this season, he scored less than 10 points in 10 games and did not reach 20 points scored in a game as his season-high of 17 points came in the season opener.
Bates was ranked as the top recruit in the 2022 class before reclassifying and heading to Memphis. He was considered a top pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but his draft stock took a hit in the eyes of some NBA draft analysts after this season.
At 18-years-old, Bates is ineligible for the 2022 NBA draft based on the NBA’s rules that states a player must be 19 years of age during the calendar year of the draft to be eligible.
Bates can choose to transfer to another school or opt to play professionally somewhere else before he can declare for the 2023 NBA Draft.
