FAYETTEVILLE — Baylor set the college hoops world ablaze earlier this month by adding James Nnaji to its roster. Nnaji, a 7-foot center from Nigeria, was the 31st pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. He now has four years of NCAA eligibility after not playing in any NBA or G League games.
After thumping James Madison to the tune of a 103-74 victory on Monday, Dec. 29, Arkansas basketball coach John Calipari was asked about players with past professional ties joining the college ranks.
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The Razorbacks‘ leader spoke uninterrupted for seven minutes, mainly voicing his displeasure for the current state of college basketball.
“If you put your name in the draft, I don’t care if you’re from Russia, and you stay in the draft, you can’t play college basketball,” Calipari said.
Calipari bemoaned how this ruling could effect high school recruits in the United States.
They can’t enter their names into the NBA draft right out of high school. There are more options now on the table for international players to test the NBA waters and still find a college basketball home years later.
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“I get so much satisfaction out of coaching young kids and seeing them grow and make it and their family life changes,” Calipari said. “I’m going to keep doing it, but why would anybody else? If you can get NBA players, G League players, guys that are 28-years old, guys from Europe.”
Calipari also criticized the midseason nature of the Nnaji joining the Bears. He doesn’t think players who join a program after the start of the season should be eligible to play until the following year.
“What does that do for the kids in the program? You’re bringing kids in at midseason, when it was their opportunity? I mean, I just don’t get any of this,” Calipari said.
However, Calipari refused to criticize any of his peers for their roster management. Baylor coach Scott Drew recently defended his decision to add Nnaji.
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“I don’t blame coaches,” Calipari said. “You know, I’ve got friends that are playing with 27-year olds and they feel bad. I said, ‘Don’t feel bad. We don’t have any rules. Why should you feel bad?'”
Calipari is not the first big name in college basketball to disagree with the NCAA’s recent ruling. Michigan State’s Tom Izzo, UConn’s Dan Hurley and Gonzaga’s Mark Few all criticized the decision to give Nnaji college eligibility.
Nnaji did not play in Baylor’s blowout victory over Arlington Baptist on Monday.
Jackson Fuller covers Arkansas football, basketball and baseball for the Southwest Times Record, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jfuller@usatodayco.com or follow him @jacksonfuller16 on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: What John Calipari said about James Nnaji, pros playing in college
