DePaul guard CJ Gunn, left, drives to the basket against St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor during the second half Feb. 3 in Chicago. Gunn, who is seeking the ability to play for Missouri men’s basketball this season, has sued the NCAA in Boone County in an attempt to receive a fifth year of eligibility.
DePaul guard CJ Gunn, left, drives to the basket against St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor during the second half Feb. 3 in Chicago. Gunn, who is seeking the ability to play for Missouri men’s basketball this season, has sued the NCAA in Boone County in an attempt to receive a fifth year of eligibility.
DePaul guard CJ Gunn, left, drives to the basket against St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor during the second half Feb. 3 in Chicago. Gunn, who is seeking the ability to play for Missouri men’s basketball this season, has sued the NCAA in Boone County in an attempt to receive a fifth year of eligibility.
Transfer guard CJ Gunn, who is seeking the ability to play for Missouri men’s basketball this season, has sued the NCAA in Boone County in an attempt to receive a fifth year of eligibility.
An attorney representing Gunn, who played four total seasons of collegiate basketball at Indiana then DePaul, filed his lawsuit Tuesday. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, at which point a judge is expected to consider whether to award Gunn a temporary restraining order that would make him eligible to play.
He has been part of an eligibility case in Texas but now has filed an individual lawsuit closer to where he wants to play this season. Star power forward Mark Mitchell, who is in a similar situation after his eligibility-granting restraining order was overturned by a Kentucky court, could do so soon as well.
It is not a guarantee that Gunn — or Mitchell, if he does file a lawsuit in Missouri — will be successful in securing a fifth season of eligibility. The Tigers’ first game of the season is Nov. 3, with closed preseason scrimmages beginning Friday and public exhibitions set for later this month.
Gunn, if eligible, would be a valuable perimeter presence for Mizzou and likely be part of the rotation. He shot 32.7% from 3-point range for DePaul last season on more than five 3-point attempts per game, averaging 13.1 points. At 6-foot-6, Gunn also has the size to contribute as a rebounder and defender.
He has enrolled at MU, the school’s student directory confirmed, and Gunn’s lawsuit says he “is an active member of the (men’s basketball roster), practicing and otherwise prepared to compete.”
Eligibility lawsuits like Gunn’s have become common in state courts across the country in the wake of the NCAA’s eligibility rule change that gives current athletes — but not those who just concluded their careers — five years of eligibility as opposed to the previous four.
Gunn’s request for a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction includes an interesting concession not seen in other athletes’ filings: an offer to repay the $524 he earned for playing three professional games in Canada after the conclusion of his collegiate career. Gunn also offered to sit out three “competitive events,” which would seemingly include closed scrimmages and exhibitions.
The Mizzou football team has benefited from defensive tackle Sterling Webb winning a fifth year of eligibility in a lawsuit earlier this year. Last month, two MU women's golfers secured temporary restraining orders to be able to rejoin that team as well.
Family, faith and football helped rear Mizzou cornerback Sione Laulea. Now the Oregon transfer from Northern California is helping lead a Mizzou defense that just smothered one of the best offenses in college football.
(The Center Square) – During a news conference announcing the federal government's cessation of granting work visas to several companies and universities accused of abusing the program, Vice President JD Vance vowed to go after companies that subsidize cheap labor at the cost of American taxpayers.
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