Will Wade Addresses LSU CBB Eligibility Concerns After Lane Kiffin's CFB Roster Issues

LSU basketball coach Will Wade told reporters on Wednesday that the program would remain "unapologetic" about adding players with contentious eligibility statuses ahead of the 2026-27 season.

"This is who we are. This is what we're doing. This is the path that we charted," he said. "We're going to go down it, and that's fine. I got it, when you do stuff that's unconventional, they're waiting for you to fail. Everybody's waiting for us to fail. That's fine. If we fail, I own it. I own it. But I felt this is the best way to try to deliver a championship team for LSU from the jump that gives us the best chance to jump-start our program. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong. I'll take it and we'll restart next year."

Among the controversial additions is former St. John's player RJ Luis, who has signed two NBA contracts but was given a temporary injunction that would allow him to play for the Tigers this season. Others include former UCLA players Skyy Clark and Donovan Dent—who sued in court to gain a fifth year of eligibility and won, though the legal fight may not be over in that regard—and international players Saliou Niang and Brice Dessert, who didn't sign NBA contracts this offseason, though neither may be eligible under current SEC rules.

LSU already earned the ire of the conference due to Lane Kiffin and the football program attempting to add players who exhausted their eligibility under the old NCAA rules—and in some cases had signed NFL contracts—before the Tigers backed down and didn't add those players to the roster. The SEC even considered removing LSU from the conference altogether.

But Wade seems ready for whatever battle—or criticism—is on the horizon.

"I'm not hiding from this," he said. "What we're doing is unconventional. I understand that. But 20 years ago, Airbnb was unconventional. Everybody stayed in a hotel. Fifteen years ago, you rode in a taxi everywhere. Now you take Uber. Just because it's unconventional doesn't mean it's not going to work. It may not work. If it doesn't, write about what an idiot I am. I understand that."