Unlike the WNBA, the SEC is standing firm and introducing a new rule to shut down a loophole once and for all.
A legal loophole in college athletics allowed athletes who signed professional contracts to return to NCAA competition, which saw players exploit state court preliminary injunctions to bypass traditional eligibility rules.
For example, former St. John’s star RJ Luis Jr. signed NBA contracts with the Utah Jazz and Boston Celtics. Despite signing pro deals, he successfully won a state court injunction that temporarily cleared him to practice and play for LSU.
Because he never appeared in a regular-season NBA game, state judges ruled the NCAA could not block his return.
However, that is all about to change.
SEC places ban on former NFL, NBA and WNBA players
The Southeastern Conference unanimously voted 16-0 to enforce a strict policy prohibiting member institutions from rostering athletes with professional draft, contract, or roster ties.
Under this new mandate, any player who has declared for the NFL, NBA, or WNBA draft without withdrawing, signed a pro contract with those leagues or their affiliates, or appeared on a professional roster is immediately barred from competing.
Conference leaders authorized SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey with full power to levy heavy penalties against non-compliant schools, drawing an absolute line in the sand to protect traditional college eligibility from professional encroachment.
It’s this kind of enforcement that the WNBA needs to take with their ongoing saga involving Enes Kanter and transgender athletes, to silence things once and for all.
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