AAC expert picks 2021-22: Projected order of finish, bold predictions, most overrated and underrated teams

[Coach Andy Mac]

For the sake of the league's future it would be beneficial if Memphis, Wichita State, SMU, Tulsa and Templecould start to establish themselves as the class of the new-look league by displaying the basketball acumen that has defined their programs in the past. If that group can collectively make progress in the 2021-22 season, then perhaps the AAC can position itself to retain "major conference" status among college basketball's punditry even after the Cougars and Bearcats are gone. 
 

CBS Sports AAC Preseason Coach of the Year 

Penny Hardaway, Memphis

Early in his tenure, Penny Hardaway seemed hellbent on playing a villainous role in college basketball and sticking it to the sport's power establishment. He wanted "all the smoke," he said and has gotten plenty of it through three seasons on the job. But as Hardaway enters Year Four, the former Tigers' great and NBA All-Star is poised for a breakthrough. With the nation's No. 1 recruiting class joining an impressive nucleus of returning talent, the Tigers should make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in his tenure and advance beyond the first weekend. 

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