James Wiseman’s decision to leave college and NCAA eligibility, explained

James Wiseman, the top-ranked freshman in college basketball and potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, was deemed ineligible by the NCAA, but played in his team’s next two games after strong support from his university. Next, the Memphis Tigers’ star center was hit with a 12-game suspension from the NCAA. On Dec. 19, the freshman told Memphis he was leaving the university to instead sign with an agent, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

The Tigers’ big man found himself at the center of the sport’s biggest controversy after a bizarre situation saw him appear in a Tennessee court one hour before starring in a blowout win over Illinois-Chicago. The entire country was watching to see what happened next amid an ongoing battle for athletes’ rights and NCAA reform.

Wiseman was the headliner of the No. 1 recruiting class in the country put together by head coach Penny Hardaway. Days after the 7’ center was brilliant in his debut vs. South Carolina State, Wiseman and Memphis were notified by the NCAA that he was likely ineligible. Instead of sitting him, Memphis decided to fight back. Wiseman played against UIC and Memphis’ close loss to Oregon before the school finally decided to sit him.

How did this mess happen? This is everything you need to know about Wiseman’s eligibility battle with the NCAA that ended with the star freshman leaving college basketball.

Why did the NCAA rule Wiseman ineligible?

Wiseman’s family allegedly accepted $11,500 from Hardaway at the onset of his junior year of high school.

Before Hardaway became head coach at Memphis ahead of the 2018-19 season, he was coaching at the high school level at Memphis East. Hardaway won consecutive state championships in Tennessee before convincing Wiseman, the No. 1 recruit in America, to transfer into the school from Nashville. Hardaway provided the money to help with moving expenses for the family.

What was James Wiseman’s punishment?

Wiseman essentially got suspended one game for every thousand dollars his family accepted. In addition to the 12-game suspension, the NCAA said Wiseman must donate $11,500 to charity. What the hell?

What is Hardaway’s role in the Wiseman situation?

The NCAA has identified Hardaway as a booster for Memphis. You can find the NCAA’s definition of a booster here. A key part: “Only institutional staff members are permitted to recruit prospective student-athletes. Generally, NCAA rules prohibit anyone else from contacting (calling, writing or in-person contact) prospects or the prospect’s relatives or guardian for recruiting purposes.”

Hardaway donated $1 million to the university in 2008 for a new sports hall of fame. Hardaway starred as a player for the school in the early ‘90s before going on to an iconic NBA career.

Why did Wiseman play against UIC and Oregon?

The NCAA wants to think it’s the police, but it’s not. There’s nothing they could do to prevent Wiseman from playing.

When the NCAA tells Memphis that Wiseman is ineligible, it is merely making a suggestion. The actual determination of an athlete’s eligibility has to be made by the university president. Schools always take the NCAA’s advice and sit the player for fear of retaliation by the NCAA down the road. Memphis did the opposite by telling the NCAA to get lost.

Memphis felt pressured to sit Wiseman after his status became one of the biggest stories in sports.

Will Wiseman play again this season?

Now we know that he won’t.

What has Wiseman said about the situation?

Wiseman tweeted this after word came out that Memphis will sit him in games until the NCAA makes a ruling:

Why were Hardaway and Wiseman in court?

Shorty after news of Wiseman’s ineligibility case became public knowledge, Hardaway and Wiseman appeared in a Shelby County, Tennessee court and got a judge to put an immediate temporary restraining order on the NCAA.

It appears Memphis did this to mostly cover their bases in the event that the NCAA eventually attempted to punish the program for playing Wiseman. Memphis only needs Wiseman eligible until early April at the latest when the college basketball season ends. Wiseman has since withdrawn the lawsuit.

What was Memphis’ defense?

This is a particularly complicated situation because Hardaway is a famous alum of the school who later became the program’s head coach. This infraction happened years before Hardaway or anyone else at the university knew that would happen.

This is how one of Wiseman’s attorneys responded to the allegations (via The Athletic):

“Their finding is arbitrary and capricious based on the law and the way the bylaws are written,” Randy Fishman, one of Wiseman’s attorneys, told The Athletic. “Nobody would’ve dreamed Penny would be the coach in 2019. He helped somebody out when he wasn’t the coach, not knowing he’d be the coach.”

The Wiseman family is also saying they moved from Nashville to Memphis so they could be closer to Wiseman’s sister.

How could the NCAA haved punished Memphis?

An NCAA tournament ban. Vacated wins. A suspension for Hardaway. The reduction of scholarships.

Memphis knew what it could one day be up against.

What was Hardaway saying about Wiseman’s eligibility?

Hardaway succinctly addressed the situation after Memphis’ win over UIC.

The program has since changed course with the hope of getting Wiseman back on the floor this season.

How will this affect Wiseman’s NBA Draft stock?

It won’t. Wiseman will still be eligible for the 2020 NBA Draft. ESPN projects him to be the No. 1 pick in the draft. We had him at No. 9 in our mock draft in June.

There is value to not playing when it comes to NBA scouts and general managers assessing a prospect’s talent. Last season, Darius Garland went No. 5 overall after playing in just five games at Vanderbilt because of an injury. If anything, not playing can hide some of a prospect’s flaws during the evaluation process.

Why wasn’t Wiseman ruled ineligible sooner?

The NCAA ruled Wiseman eligible on May 29, according to a court filing. It later said his amateurism certificate was issued in error, but stood by its initial ruling.

Memphis received word on Oct. 31 that Wiseman was now likely ineligible. It’s likely that someone complained to the NCAA about Wiseman’s status for them to review his case again.

Can we see some Wiseman highlights?

Wiseman’s finished with 17 points, nine rebounds, and five blocks vs. UIC. Watch his here:

Wiseman had 28 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks in his debut vs. South Carolina State:

Wiseman finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds in a Tigers loss to Oregon on Tuesday: