NIL Was Never Meant to Look Like This

Everyone who has a platform in the college basketball world has been trying to tell anyone who would listen that the current pay-for-play model isn’t sustainable and that there would be a straw that broke the camel’s back, essentially breaking the sport.  December 24th, 2025, may be the day that happened.

Christmas Eve Shockwaves Across College Basketball

Christmas Eve is usually a quiet day in the sports world as everyone is at home with their families awaiting Santa’s arrival.  Huge breaking Basketball news is usually the furthest thing from everyone’s mind, but the Baylor Bears and head coach Scott Drew made sure the program was going to be the talk of Christmas dinners around the college basketball world.

When an NBA Draft Pick Becomes a College Recruit

Baylor signed center James Nnaji on Wednesday.  Nnaji is eligible to play immediately and will be eligible for 4 years.  That all seems normal. Right, here is where it gets absurd.  Nnaji was the 31st pick of the 2023 NBA Draft and was involved in one of the biggest trades in the NBA last offseason.  Nnaji has never played a minute in the NBA, but the New York Knicks do still have his rights, or at least had them until he decided to play college basketball.

What Happened to the Sport We Fell in Love With?

There were a lot of emotions running through my mind, and the first one was what happened to the sport I fell in love with?  Pay-for-Play has not been suitable for College Basketball, and this is never what NIL was intended to be. But until the NCAA steps in and establishes a set of rules that don’t violate any court orders, this has the potential to get much worse.  

The NCAA Still Has a Chance to Draw a Line

The NCAA can finally step in and do something with this.  There is zero reason that Nnaji should be eligible to play for Baylor.  He was already allowed to play college basketball, and he chose the NBA route, which ended his college eligibility or at least it should have.  

A Precedent With No Rulebook

The other thought is where do we go from here?  The question is no one knows?  There has never been a case like this in the sport.  Nnaji is the trial run but given that so many of the college basketball media members have bad feelings about this should tell you everything you need to know about it.

The NBA Ripple Effect No One Is Talking About

What happens when Nnaji plays in a game against say Houston or Kansas and goes for 20 points, 20 rebounds, and 10 blocks (obviously these are what-if’s) and then the Knicks decide that the big man is ready to contribute to the NBA squad?  Is he tied to college for all 4 years?  Is he allowed to go play with the Knicks early and ending his college basketball tenure?  That decision is going to have huge impacts on the NBA, the Baylor Bears and to a lesser extent the NCAA Selection Committee.

How This Impacts Baylor and the NCAA Tournament Picture

Baylor is currently 9-2 and putting up well over 90 points per game.  Baylor is currently on the right side of the bubble and if Nnaji works out the Bears could move off the bubble to securely in the tournament, however if he doesn’t work out they could potentially fall off the bubble.  When it comes time to evaluate NCAA Tournament resumes the committee is going to have to determine where Baylor would need to be seeded at, it just makes things harder for everyone involved.

Does College Basketball Have to Break to Be Fixed?

The final thought that went through my mind was could this in some roundabout way be good for the game?  Just to be clear I do not think that college basketball should be going after players who were drafted in the NBA and think it is sickening that Baylor entertained this idea but what I mean when I say it could be good for the game is this.

Absurdity as a Catalyst for Change

Oftentimes when you want to see tangible change things need to get worse before they get better and in this case things need to get absurd before they get better.  The more absurd the better I say.  The worse it is, the more likely coaches, administrations, and the NCAA are likely to step in and get some things done when it comes to rules and regulations.  

A Line That Never Should Have Been Crossed

As I mentioned above, this is the first time a situation like this has ever happened. Yes, it is absurd, and hopefully, this brings about reasonable change to the sport we all love.  There is a way for everyone to operate in the realm of NIL without the absurdity. Please go back to what NIL was supposed to be in the context of Name, Image, and Likeness deals.  Pay for Play isn’t working.