Is Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu heading back to Memphis? The fallout from the Tiger's 2023 NBA Draft decision

Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu has determined his basketball future, and he decided to remain in the NBA Draft, according to his agent. The Nigerian forward's decision was puzzling, to say the least. Akobundu-Ehiogu wasn't tearing up the American Conference during the 2022-23 season.

In his last NCAA season, and his first with Memphis, Akobundu-Ehiogu averaged only 10.5 minutes per game. He averaged an impressive 1.6 blocks per game with those limited minutes though. However, he only racked up 2.6 points and 1.7 rebounds per game in those minutes.

Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu's decision to stay in the draft betrays the popular move by most college basketball players with eligibility remaining right now. His prospects don't seem great and there was still plenty of room to grow in Memphis.

The Tigers now have a lot of holes to fill ahead of this upcoming season, leaving them in a precarious spot.

Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu is far from the only Memphis departure

Last season's Memphis Tigers won the American Athletic Conference basketball tournament, beating #1 Houston to take the crown. They then suffered a tight loss to FAU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, which left a lot of what-ifs. Especially since FAU didn't have to go through the region's #1-seed on the way.

Instead of players coming back and trying to finish stronger, many are bolting Penny Hardaway's program. Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu is one of seven players that have decided to pursue basketball opportunities outside of Memphis.

The Tigers aren't starting from scratch, but the team will look very different during the 2023-24 season.

This is why Akobundu-Ehiogu's choice arguably doesn't make sense for either side. The minutes were there for Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu, who needs to improve dramatically on the offensive end. Meanwhile, Memphis now has to find a replacement for an anticipated defensive linchpin.

Akobundu-Ehiogu will probably get a shot with one of the NBA's 30 teams, which is all an athlete can ask for. From there, he'll have a chance to stick if he can find the right situation. Memphis isn't as lucky, however, as replacing a shot-blocker of his caliber is difficult, even if he was barely exceeding 10 minutes per game.

Florida Atlantic v Memphis

More concerning perhaps for Memphis is that so many players are willingly leaving after winning a conference championship. The Tigers have been in the Big Dance for the past two years after zero appearances over the previous seven seasons.

Something is afoot in Memphis, and program stability can't be built when half of a roster leaves in one off-season.