This is huge news.
Wiseman was a top high school star in Nashville when he moved to Memphis to play on the Memphis East high school team coached by Penny Hardaway (and also on Hardaway's AAU team).
The NCAA has found that Wiseman's moving expenses from Nashville to Memphis were paid by Penny Hardaway. Even though Hardaway was not yet hired by Memphis as their head coach, the NCAA has deemed that he was a Memphis booster, and thus the moving expenses constituted an illegal benefit. Wiseman's family has conceded that the moving expenses amounted to $11,500, but claimed that James Wiseman did not know anything about the money.
As noted, Bradley freshman Antonio Thomas also played at Memphis East for Penny Hardaway, but this ruling does not affect Thomas in any way.
https://www.si.com/college/2019/11/0...neligible-ncaa
James Wiseman already played in Memphis' season opening game Tuesday against South Carolina State and was dominant, scoring 28 points, and grabbing 11 rebounds in just 22 minutes. He was the #1 recruit in the class of 2019, and he is projected to be the #1 overall pick in next June's 2020 NBA Draft. Wiseman has hired a lawyer, and reportedly already has filed suit. The lawyer announced:
Ballin added that a Shelby County court judge ruled to put a hold on the NCAA's ruling, pending further litigation, meaning that Wiseman will be eligible to play Friday night when the Tigers host Illinois-Chicago. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ET.
If the ruling is upheld, he could choose to play overseas for a year, or just sit out and work out prior to the 2020 draft.
Memphis will still be a very good team without Wiseman, but maybe not quite as good as they would have been with him.