LSU head coach Will Wade is angering a lot of people with his extremely bold recruiting strategy.
Reports on Tuesday indicated that former St. John’s standout RJ Luis is transferring to LSU. This is despite the fact that Luis signed a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz in 2025 after going undrafted in the NBA Draft.
This comes days after Wade reportedly brought in center Yam Madar, who was drafted 47th overall in 2020 but never signed an NBA contract. He has also brought in multiple players who played professionally in Europe last season.
Will Wade and LSU are building the most unorthodox college basketball roster of all-time.
— College Basketball Report (@CBKReport) May 19, 2026
• Yam Madar (25, drafted in 2020)
• RJ Luis (23, G League)
• Brice Dessert (23, EuroLeague)
• Marcio Santos (23, EuroLeague)
• Mo Dioubate (22, Kentucky)
• Austin Nunez (23, UTSA)
•… pic.twitter.com/xmgroQRLLe
Wade is essentially trying to exploit the NCAA’s lack of clear eligibility rules. Luis’s eligibility will likely be decided by a judge, and Wade will take him on in case he is allowed to play. If he is ruled ineligible, there is not much downside for LSU.
Been clear for a bit: Will Wade intends to build the closest thing to a professional basketball team CBB has seen, and seriously push bounds of NCAA rules in process.
— Kevin Sweeney (@CBB_Central) May 19, 2026
RJ Luis signed two NBA contracts. He's not eligible to play in NCAA unless LSU can find a friendly judge.
The Alabama Crimson Tide tried to do something similar last year by bringing in Charles Bediako, a former G League player. Bediako was initially allowed to play before a judge stepped in to block that. The attempt still made Alabama look bad, though.
Wade was accused of multiple NCAA rules violations during his first stint at LSU, and engineered a fairly graceless exit from NC State earlier this year. He is not someone who cares much about being loved or hated, and if he thinks he can gain an advantage from exploiting gray areas in NCAA rules, he sees no reason not to try it.
