BREAKING: Another Gophers basketball player enters transfer portal despite having zero eligibility

Three players from last season’s Minnesota Gophers basketball team are seeking an additional year of eligibility. On Wednesday, Lu’Cye Patterson became the third to enter the transfer portal, joining Mike Mitchell Jr. and Trey Edmonds—even though all three have technically exhausted their eligibility.

Patterson previously played two seasons at Missouri State and another two at Charlotte before transferring to Minnesota, where he used the extra year granted to athletes from the COVID-impacted 2020-21 season. He turns 24 in December, and under current NCAA rules, his eligibility has run out.

They’re not alone in pursuing this path—Wake Forest’s Efton Reid, Syracuse’s Eddie Lampkin, and NC State’s Will Middlebrooks are among others in similar situations.

With NIL rules evolving and revenue-sharing on the horizon, the NCAA has little authority to push back on these eligibility claims.

It’s likely that Patterson, Mitchell, and Edmonds are simply testing their options and won’t be suiting up in Division I next season. Still, in today’s unpredictable college sports climate, nothing is certain when it comes to eligibility.

While there’s nothing preventing Patterson from entering the portal, there’s also no indication he’ll be granted another season. Given the current landscape—where athletes are skipping spring practices and eligibility waivers are increasingly lenient—it’s hard to fault players for exploring all avenues. But the NCAA desperately needs clearer and firmer guidelines.