On Christmas Eve Baylor basketball program announced figuratively (and, uh, literally) big holiday surprise: 7-foot center James Nnaji31st number in the overall ranking 2023 NBA Draft who played the last four seasons in the Euroleague, has signed with the school and is immediately eligible to play for the Bears.
Adding an immediately eligible player mid-season is unusual, although not unique, in college basketball. However, the mid-season release of a previously drafted men's national team player NBA team has no precedent. And this raises many questions, such as: how did this happen? Will similar situations occur more frequently in the future? And what loophole did the Bears pull this deal through?
All the right questions, asked by college coaches and staff themselves. CBS Sports anonymously surveyed college coaches on the topic to gauge reactions within the sport. Their responses—and the answers to these questions—are below.
College coaches react
Reactions ranging from pragmatism to envy and concern echoed across the country over the weekend. One Big East coach told CBS Sports he has “no problem” with what Baylor did because they are doing everything they can to improve their roster. Another Big Ten coach said Baylor's actions were simply within the rules.
“They were creative enough to find a situation that fit into a narrow interpretation, which is what we all try to do,” the Big Ten coach said.
However, others seem less enthusiastic about the deal and what the precedent portends for the future of the sport.
One Big 12 coach said, “[It's] Baylor will have to decide whether using the rule is part of the culture of their program. Just because something is currently legal doesn't make it better for the game.”
This coach seemed to be repeating that Michigan State coach Tom Izzo addressed the situation over the weekend..
“I mean, if we’re going to do this, shame on the NCAA,” Izzo said. “The coaches are also ashamed. But shame on the NCAA because I think the coaches will do what they have to do.”
Izzo said Drew called him and wanted to talk to him about the situation.
A major conference general manager admitted to CBS Sports that Baylor has made an effort to improve its roster, which is the ultimate goal. Baylor just went to a place no one else has gone before. They seem to argue that the interpretation of whether it was morally right or wrong is less important than whether such steps would have a net positive effect.
“The motherfucker will go anywhere to find someone to help them win a basketball game right now,” the general manager said. “I don’t think we will do that because these guys are professionals. How will they cope with the way a college coach coaches? This was my thought process.
“Pros don't worry about winning the way you worry about winning in college,” the grandmaster added. “You have to really dig into the character traits and then push those traits on returning adult men who didn't play college basketball. NBA and it's a different game than the G League. This shit is about winning; The NBA is a matter of money.”
Overall, there appears to be a mixture of both interest in how the situation at Baylor is developing and a desire among some college members within the NCAA to at least clarify the rulebook – if not close the loophole entirely.
“The drafted player should be ineligible,” the Big Ten coach told CBS Sports. “And it also calls into question the release date of the project and whether it has any significance.”
The Big 12 coach agreed: “ [loophole] should be closed to prevent professionals from returning to college.”
The college CEO downplayed the significance of the signing and pointed to the tiny pool of players from which these transactions could originate as reason to believe it is unlikely to be a conduit for college programs to tap into in the future.
“I don't [think it will have a big impact on roster construction,” the GM told CBS Sports. “I don't think the player pool is going to be large enough. [And] I think the NCAA or NBA will fix this very quickly. Whoever is going to do this better do it now because it won't happen anymore.
“I'm interested to see how that translates into how good he actually is, how much of an impact he has and how much they win,” the grandmaster added. “Because they're going to be under scrutiny all year because of it.”
How did this become clear?
When Baylor found out about the big man's transfer Juslyn Bodo Bodo Likely sidelined this year due to a summer injury, Baylor general manager Jason Smith has reached out to several contacts to see if any good midyear additions could make sense for the team as replacements, a source told CBS Sports. Nnaji, whose representatives had indicated he was interested in moving to the United States, appeared to be the best option.
As such, Smith worked in tandem with Nnaji's representatives and the NCAA throughout the process to ensure he could be cleared for mid-season. (Nnaji's situation has changed in recent months following a mutual split with Barcelona this summer, opening up the possibility of a move elsewhere.)
The NCAA allowed Nnaji to play college basketball because he is an international player who still has five years left of high school, considering he is still only 21 years old. This clearance comes despite being drafted by the NBA's Detroit Pistons in 2023. His rights were traded to the Hornets on draft night and then to the New York Knicks in 2024 as part of the deal to acquire Karl-Anthony Towns.
How long does Nnaji still have college eligibility?
The NCAA's official eligibility rule and its five-year deadline allow players to complete four years of athletic competition from the time they first enroll in college full-time. This means Nnaji's clearance gives him four years of eligibility to contest elections. Under NCAA rules, Nnaji is eligible as a freshman with no prior full-time college experience. These qualifications are awarded regardless of the time of year of initial registration.
Interestingly, several more former professional players have joined the college ranks. Thierry Darlan (St. Clair) And London Johnson (Louisville) received two years of NCAA eligibility. Darlan's watch began this year, and Johnson's watch will begin next year.
How House vs. NCAA Helped Baylor (and Others)
Schools that support the House ban and choose to share revenue with athletes must also have an open roster spot to sign a player midseason. This legislation also increased the number of scholarships available to the men's basketball team from 13 to 15. So even with Baylor's lack of attrition, it has additional room to make a similar move as the one it makes in adding Nnaji.
Origin of Nnaji
In 2020, Nnaji moved from Hungary, where he had lived for several years, to Barcelona to join the FC Barcelona basketball team. This led to increased interest in his skills at international level as he developed and made the A team in 2021. He also played on loan several times for Girona in the Spanish ACB League and for Merkezefdeni, a Basketball Super League team in Turkey.
Nnaji was considered a potential first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but was selected 31st overall (first pick of the second round) on draft night after the Hornets traded up on draft night to acquire him.
Despite being a high-profile draft, Nnaji never played in the NBA or G-League, only in the NBA Summer League before returning overseas.
Precedent and similar cases
Nnaji's Christmas Eve signing ruffled feathers and in one case even caused a stir among players after On3 reported – and subsequently retracted its report – that former undrafted guard and current Chicago Bull Trentin Flowers had attracted interest from 12 college teams. CBS Sports' Matt Norlander reached out to multiple schools that were reportedly interested in courting Flowers, and five denied the report.
Flowers' situation is similar to Nnaji's in that he didn't play basketball in college—he committed to Louisville first before choosing a pro career—but is different in that Flowers has played in eight NBA games over the past two seasons. Despite this, Flowers is still believed to be attracting interest from college teams, although there aren't a dozen players currently on the roster.
There have been other similar situations involving former professional athletes in recent years, including the aforementioned Johnson, who has played professionally since 2022 and transferred to Louisville earlier this year, and Darlan, a former G League defenseman who now plays for Santa Clara. Johnson will have two years of eligibility beginning in the 2026-27 season after three years of playing in the G League, while Darlan has two years of eligibility.
