By ADAM ZAGORIA
St. John’s star Babacar Sane remains eligible to play for St. John’s after Judge Karina E. Alomar did not reach a decision on his NCAA eligibility case in Queens Supreme Court on Monday. A second hearing is scheduled for Nov. 9, his attorney Elliot Abrams said.
“He can play,” Abrams said by phone. “The injunction remains in effect. The injunction protects St. John’s from playing him.”
The 6-foot-8 Sane remains eligible to play in St. John’s upcoming exhibition games this month and in regular-season games vs. Monmouth (Nov. 2) and Iona (Nov. 8). He was recently named a team captain by head coach Rick Pitino,
Sane in 2024 signed an Exhibit-10 contract with the Utah Jazz but never played in an NBA game.
The NCAA maintains that signing any professional NBA deal—including Exhibit 10 contracts—violates eligibility rules,
A native of Senegal, Sane sued the NCAA in September over his eligibility status. He received a temporary restraining order (TRO) on Sept. 8.
dProvidence has a similar situation with guard Dink Pate. who signed an Exhbit-10 with the Knicks but turned down Two-Way and 10-day contracts to preserve his college eligibility.
Unlike the Power-4 leagues, the Big East has yet to formally issue a ruling against former pros returning to campus.
“They drafted rules on post-enrollment, on guys who played professionally and then came back {to college],” new Big East Commissioner Tim Brosnan said last week at Big East Media Day. “Our guys are all pre-enrollment, the guys in our conference. That’s it, and no one to date has drafted rules on the pre-enrollments.”
Pre-enrollment refers to playing in international professional leagues, signing minor-league professional contracts, or participating in certain professional drafts before stepping foot on a college campus as an enrolled student.
Post-enrollment refers to an active or previously enrolled college athlete leaving school—or attempting to play/sign—with a professional team, or entering professional drafts while maintaining or exhausting college eligibility under broader conference or association frameworks.
“Lots of these guys are going to be in court,” Brosnan said of the Big East players involved in suits. “We’re not going to litigate with anybody right now, and we keep in touch with the conference. We keep in touch with our attorneys and we keep ourselves in line.”
He added: “We’re going to follow the NCAA’s edicts. They’re the governing body and that’s who we follow.”
Pitino said last week he expects all of his players to be eligible.
Another St. John’s player, fifth-year wing Keyshawn Hall, has a hearing on Tuesday in Queens Supreme Court.
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