In the world of NCAA basketball, there is no more discussed non-Covid topic than “transfers.” It’s been around since the dawn of time, but the concept has exploded over the past decade, with hundreds of DI athletes each offseason choosing to leave their original programs to go elsewhere.
But in recent years it has become a very controversial subject. For those on the “old school” side, transferring is looked down upon because it involves “calling it quits” when the going gets tough and breaking an agreement/commitment to the school/coach you made.
However, those on the other side put forward two main arguments. The first is the hypocrisy that head coaches can break these same agreements with school/high school recruits, without having to face any issues. And given that the players aren’t getting paid (yet), there’s no reason why they can’t leave freely.
Something else emerged in the use of “waivers,” granted to transfers by the NCAA to play without having to sit out for a legitimate reason, such as being closer to home or not having a scholarship available from the old team. But that line has become blurred recently, with controversy arising with some players getting waivers, while others did not.
This is why the NCAA wanted to get out of the waiver business by establishing a new general rule for all transfers. The proposed new rule would be for all players to be allowed to transfer freely without having to sit out a single time. There are pros and cons to this, but it saves those who need to get waivers. However, the pandemic forced the committee to postpone enforcement of the new rule at least until the next offseason. But there’s a good chance that will change in 2021.
This still creates a ton of questions for this offseason’s transfers, with many having already submitted waiver requests. Two key players – Marquette’s DJ Carton and UCLA’s Johnny Juzang, have already been granted waivers to play in 2020-21. But many others are still in limbo, regarding their respective programs.
Hopefully this will be resolved in the coming months, but for now it’s time to speculate. Here is a list of 20 transfers seeking waivers that can have a big impact on the upcoming season.
