Could the college wild wild west enable this Illinois basketball great to return?

The college world has been somewhat rocked, but could the Illinois basketball program be the beneficiary?

On Wednesday, the news of 2023 NBA Draft pick James Nnaji enrolling at Baylor University dropped. This was eye-opening for everyone, as it could open the door for others to join the party, and potentially, have a massive Illini player come back for one more run.

Nnaji, a 7-foot center from Nigeria, was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the No. 31 pick in 2023. His draft rights were then later traded to the Charlotte Hornets, and then to the New York Knicks as part of the massive Karl Anthony-Towns trade.

Nnaji was one of the top international players to come from that year's draft. The problem, however, is that he hasn't actually played a real NBA game. He's basically become a highly-touted 'draft-and-stash' player who has been playing overseas since his draft day.

This has been a normal occurrence for recruits who come from other parts of the world. But recently, the 21-year-old big man made probably the biggest splash of his basketball career with the Baylor Bears.

Nnaji is heading back to college. The Barça big-fella has officially committed to play for Scott Drew's Bears, and will reportedly be eligible to play in the second half of the season. He will also reportedly be granted four years of eligibility since he never went to college, and he never signed an NBA contract.

Baylor has blown open a forbidden door, of sorts, for major collegiate programs to recruit through. This has become a major development in college sports, to the point where it has brought the question: Can Illinois get Kofi Cockburn back to Champaign?

Does Kofi Cockburn have a clear path back to the Illinois basketball program

The quick answer to this question is a resounding no. Under the current rules and regulations of the NCAA, there is no reason to believe that Kofi has any chance to come back to Illinois to use his final year of eligibility.

The main reason for that is the fact that he is already officially a professional athlete. After going undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft, Kofi ended up signing an Exhibit 10 deal with the Utah Jazz. This contract, in layman's terms, is basically an official one-year NBA deal on a minimum salary. It's a chance for an undrafted prospect to compete for a spot on the team, and for the team to get one last look at him.

Nnaji, on the other hand, did not sign an official NBA contract to play in the league. When he was drafted, the teams in question (Detroit, Charlotte, New York) were basically just trading his rights around while he continued to play overseas. They didn't have any vested interest in the player. Nnaji never put pen to paper. These teams basically just had legal dibs on him and his future in the NBA.

It's a convoluted situation, I know. But the fact of the matter is that Kofi is not coming back to college basketball. He is not coming back to the Illini. If the NCAA wants to make a special exception for the big fella, I will not say boo about it. But there is no reason to believe that he will be pulling a Nnaji any time soon.