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Scouting organizations had Memphis coach Josh Pastner as the second best recruiter this past off-season, but high hopes that the Tigers would be back to their best in 2010-11 have taken a serious hit.

Will Barton, who the best basketball tipsters consider as arguably the best shooting guard to join the college ranks this year, has been ruled academically ineligible by the NCAA and would now seem unlikely ever to pull on a Tigers jersey before heading off to the NBA next summer.

Barton was with the Tigers for their first few practices of the late summer before being told that he was ineligible, seemingly stemming from the fact he had been to a number of high schools before arriving at Memphis, something that always brings up a red flag with collegiate sporting officials.

Barton was expected to be a huge contributor in Pastner’s second season with the Tigers, and he will appeal the decision, but if it does come to light that he failed to graduate in the NCAA’s time-frame, then there is little he or Memphis can do about it.

He will have options even if the NCAA declares him ineligible, perhaps following Brandon Jennings’ example and heading off to Europe, but that is of no consolation to the Tigers, despite their incoming class oozing ability and skill without Barton.

Sadly, it appears that previous history may have also come back to haunt Memphis; this is not the first time they have had issues to answer over academic questions (Derrick Rose, Pierre Henderson-Niles) and it appears the NCAA has had enough of it, despite Barton’s ‘mistake’ being the least egregious.

So, for now, basketball betting pundits note how the Tigers have to move on without Barton, but the disappointment might just be lessened by the quality of the rest of their class, which could well include as many as five freshmen making up part of their rotation.

Chief among them seems to be Joe Jackson, who would appear likely to start in the backcourt, while Jelan Kendrick, Tarik Black and Chris Crawford could all play significant minutes in their first season, one that could see the Tigers back at the top of the Conference USA table after losing out to UTEP last time around.

2009 Memphis Tigers Basketball Schedule

11/3 LEMOYNE-OWEN COLLEGE (Exhibition) FEDEXFORUM 7 pm
11/9 CHRISTIAN BROTHERS (Exhibition) FEDEXFORUM 7 pm
11/13 JACKSON STATE# FEDEXFORUM 8 pm
11/17 vs. Kansas (Hall of Fame Showcase) Saint Louis, Mo. ESPN 9 pm
(Scottrade Center)
11/20 TENNESSEE TECH (Hall of Fame Showcase) FEDEXFORUM 7 pm
11/24 CENTRAL ARKANSAS (Hall of Fame Showcase) FEDEXFORUM 7 pm
11/30 OAKLAND (Hall of Fame Showcase) FEDEXFORUM 7 pm

12/5 ARKANSAS STATE FEDEXFORUM `7 pm
12/9 MONTANA STATE FEDEXFORUM 7 pm
12/12 vs. Arkansas-Little Rock North Little Rock, Ark. 2 pm
(Verizon Arena)
12/19 vs. UMass Boston, Mass. ESPN2 5 pm
(TD Banknorth Arena)
12/22 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE FEDEXFORUM 12 pm
12/28 IUPUI FEDEXFORUM 12 pm
12/31 TENNESSEE FEDEXFORUM ESPN2 3 pm

2010 Memphis Tigers Basketball Schedule

1/3 HOUSTON BAPTIST FEDEXFORUM 2 pm
1/6 at Syracuse Syracuse, N.Y. ESPN2 6 pm
1/9 at Southern Miss* Hattiesburg, Miss. CSS 7 pm
1/13 EAST CAROLINA* FEDEXFORUM CSS 6 pm
1/16 at Rice* Houston, Texas CSS 7 pm
1/20 UTEP* FEDEXFORUM CBS C 7 pm
1/23 HOUSTON* FEDEXFORUM ESPN2 7 pm
1/27 at Marshall* Huntington, W.Va. CBS C 7 pm
1/30 at SMU* Dallas, Texas 2 pm

2/3 UAB* FEDEXFORUM CBS C 7 pm
2/6 GONZAGA FEDEXFORUM ESPN2 3 pm
2/10 UCF* FEDEXFORUM CSS 6 pm
2/13 at Tulsa* Tulsa, Okla. ESPN2 6 pm
2/17 at Tulane* New Orleans, La. CSS 6 pm
2/20 SMU* FEDEXFORUM 7 pm
2/24 at Houston* Houston, Texas CSS 6 pm
2/27 SOUTHERN MISS* FEDEXFORUM CBS C 7 pm

3/3 at UAB* Birmingham, Ala. CSS 6 pm
4/6 TULSA* FEDEXFORUM CBS C 12 pm

2010 Conference USA Tournament
10-13 Conference USA Tournament Tulsa, Okla.
(BOK Center)

Josh Pastner, Memphis Coach

Well, it hasn’t even been a week since I wrote Is Josh Pastner a Better Recruiter than Coacl Cal, when Coach Pastner turns around and signs Will and Antonio Barton, two star guards in the 2010 recruiting class. Will is ranked as the number 7 overall rated player in his high school class. Coach Pastner was able to sign the Barton brothers in direct competition with Coach John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats. The Memphis, Commercial Appeal reported that the brothers signed with Memphis after the recent SAT issues of NBA guard Derek Rose came to light with Coach Cal appearing to be complicated in the matter. Will Barton is expected to compete for a starting spot with Memphis immediately in the 2010-100 season and his brother will likely be a role player for his first year or so on the team.

2010 Memphis Tiger Basketball Recruiting Class
#1 – 2010 Memphis Tiger Basketball Recruit – SG – Will Barton
Ht: 6’6″
Wt: 170lbs
Rank: 7
Will Barton is a dominating guard who has game changing impact in multiple facets of a basketball game. He’s not afraid of contact in the pain and is able to finish strong at thte rim. He has great size for a guard at 6’6″ and is able to score from all over the court. Will brings a good outside shot as well and is considered an excellent defender as well. Considered to be very coachable, Barton is one of the top-rated prospects in the 2010 class and could very well end up as the number 1 overall 2010 prospect.

#2 – 2010 Memphis Tiger Basketball Recruit – PG – Antonio Barton
Ht: 6’2″
Wt:170lbs
Rank: 3 Star
Antonio is a bit shorter than his brother but still brings good size at 6’2″ tall. He’s a great combination guard prospect who is playing the point on his AAU and school teams. Able to beat his opponents on the dribble and create shots for teammates and himself. Antonio brings decent ball handling and a good basketball IQ to the mix as well. Antonio is not as strong of a defender as is brother, however, and that is the area of his game that requires the most improvement.

View the True Blue Tiger video interviewof the Barton Brothers here.