Memphis basketball lands blockbuster commitments from Mikey Williams, JJ Taylor

Mikey Williams and JJ Taylor gave their verbal commitments to Memphis basketball coach Penny Hardaway on Saturday.

Williams is a five-star combo guard and Taylor is a four-star forward. The Class of 2023 recruits, who are teammates at San Ysidro (Calif.), are currently on unofficial visits with the Tigers and announced their commitments on Instagram. They join a Memphis recruiting class that already includes four-star guard Carl Cherenfant and three-star guard Ryan Forrest.

Landing Williams and Taylor represents a return to his recruiting roots for Hardaway. The fifth-year Tigers coach assembled two No. 1 recruiting classes in a three-year span. The first was highlighted by five-star recruits James Wiseman and Precious Achiuwa, both first-round NBA Draft picks who are currently on NBA rosters. Memphis' top-rated 2021 class was headlined by Emoni Bates and Jalen Duren (a first-round selection). It also included Josh Minott, a second-round pick in the most recent draft.

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Securing commitments from Williams and Taylor also vault Memphis' 2023 recruiting class to No. 8 in the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Williams (6-foot-2, 190 pounds) is a native of San Diego who also had interest from prominent programs such as Kansas, Arkansas and Arizona State. He rose to superstardom in middle school as a social media sensation. Since then, he has become a major influencer, boasting more than 5 million followers across various platforms, including Instagram and TikTok. Thanks to his social media reach, Williams' NIL worth is reportedly north of $3 million. In 2021, he signed a multiyear NIL deal with Puma, becoming the first American high school basketball player to sign a sneaker deal with a global footwear company. Memphis is a Nike school. It is unclear whether that will present a conflict of interest.

After playing his freshman season at San Ysidro, Williams transferred to Lake Norman Christian in Charlotte, N.C. for his sophomore season. Last season, he suited up for Vertical Academy in Charlotte.

Williams is the No. 22 overall recruit in the 2023 class.

Taylor (6-8, 170) is a native of Chicago who spent last season at Donda Academy (Calif.). But after the school's founder, Kanye West, shut it down for the remainder of the school year following waves of controversy in the wake of antisemitic tweets and comments from him, Taylor transferred to San Ysidro.

Taylor is ranked No. 63 in the 2023 class and holds offers from Kentucky, Arkansas and Duke. He was once considered one of the top prospects in his class, as recently as 2021, but has since tumbled in the rankings. Taylor played for Mac Irvin Fire on the EYBL circuit this summer, averaging 14.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists a game.

Memphis recently hosted three-star Dream City Christian (Ariz.) wing David Tubek (6-8) on an official visit and is expected to have Hardaway's son, Ashton Hardaway, on campus next week for an official visit. The younger Hardaway plays for Sierra Canyon (Calif.), the same team as four-star guard Bronny James, the son of Bronny James. James also holds an offer from Memphis and played alongside Williams on the AAU circuit several years ago.

Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Mikey Williams, JJ Taylor commit to Memphis basketball, Penny Hardaway