Court Rulings Reshaping College Basketball Rosters

College basketball players are joining teams this week based on court rulings rather than NCAA policy. Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen received permission in September to play a fifth season for the No. 1 Gators. The NCAA has appealed that decision, but Aberdeen is eligible for Florida's game against No. 14 Miami on Monday night.

Coach Todd Golden said Aberdeen's legal team "put an incredible argument forward, so we're planning on having him and we feel good about it" at Southeastern Conference media days.

The disputes follow the NCAA's adoption of a five-year eligibility model that starts counting when an athlete turns 19 or graduates high school. Players from the high school class of 2022 who completed four seasons are seeking a fifth year. A separate category involves players who signed with professional teams and want to return to college. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine issued an executive order allowing a fifth season for players in his state, a move that prompted the NCAA to sue him.

As of Thursday morning, the NCAA said 200 lawsuits have been filed since the age-based model was approved in June, involving about 850 plaintiffs across all sports seeking eligibility for the 2026-27 season. About 115 of those lawsuits concern the new eligibility rules. The plaintiff count includes 362 men's and 62 women's basketball players. Courts have granted relief to 171 men and 30 women, while the rest are ineligible.

Rosters are changing on short notice. A Louisiana judge on Wednesday blocked the SEC from punishing St. John's transfer RJ Luis Jr. if LSU adds him to its roster. St. John's forward Babacar Sane has a temporary restraining order from a New York court that allows him to compete through a Nov. 9 hearing, covering two games. North Carolina State's Ven-Allen Lubin and Texas Tech's Darrion Williams are plaintiffs in a Texas case set for trial Dec. 14, six weeks into the season.

Louisville women's coach Jeff Walz added forward Amiya Joyner for the fifth year after a favorable Louisiana ruling. Ohio State men's coach Jake Diebler is not listed in the source, but Minnesota coach Niko Medved said he has leading scorer Cade Tyson practicing while Tyson awaits a court ruling. "You don't know if guys who will be playing in November will be playing in December," Medved said.

Kansas coach Bill Self said eligibility should be uniform across states. "I find it very, very hard to consider how some people could be eligible and some people not eligible with the same type of lawsuit," Self said. Duke coach Jon Scheyer said cases will continue into the season. Ohio's DeWine order and federal cases in multiple states are pending, and the Protect College Sports Act has passed the Senate but is uncertain in the House.