RJ Luis hasn’t stopped his efforts to play basketball for coach Will Wade at LSU.
His lawyers are reportedly asking a Louisiana judge to block the Southeastern Conference from penalizing LSU if he’s put on the roster, The Associated Press reported. The request was included in a petition to a state district court in East Baton Rouge Parish.
The SEC established penalties for programs that added an athlete who previously signed a pro contract with an NFL, NBA or WNBA franchise, including a fine equal to 50% of a team’s budget and a half-season suspension for its coach.
Luis, who previously signed an NBA contract after going undrafted in the 2025 draft, was granted a preliminary injunction against the NCAA by Judge Ronald R. Johnson Aug. 24 in a Baton Rouge court, allowing him to play college basketball.
During SEC Media Day on Oct. 13, Wade was asked about the status of Luis, who had previously been practicing with the team, after he didn’t show for the first exhibition game against McNeese State five days earlier
“We’re going to follow all the SEC protocols with him,” Wade said on a virtual call. “I think it’s been pretty clear what the SEC protocols are on all that. He didn’t travel with us to McNeese, and he hasn’t been rostered.”
Attorneys Tony Clayton of Baton Rouge and Elliot Abrams of Raleigh, North Carolina, represent Luis and not LSU. They asked the judge to block LSU from following any SEC directives that prevent Luis from playing this season.
“LSU has not rostered Mr. Luis, and the reason it has given is the Conference’s protocols,” Luis’ petition states. “This court enjoined the NCAA, and everyone acting in concert or participation with it, from keeping RJ Luis Jr. off the floor at LSU this season, directly or indirectly. The Southeastern Conference’s policy is what keeps him off the floor now.”
An SEC spokesman told The Associated Press Tuesday that it had no immediate comment on the latest actions from Luis’ lawyers. The SEC is already defending a federal lawsuit in Alabama over LSU’s efforts to add Luis, arguing the school failed to comply with the conference’s professionalism rule.
The SEC’s rules barring some former professional football players were also challenged by LSU.
The conference was going to hold a vote Sept. 10 to decide whether to expel LSU. That vote did not occur after LSU football coach Lane Kiffin did not add tight end Dae’Quan Wright and Zxavian Harris, who both previously signed with NFL teams.
In September, Louisiana attorney general Liz Murrill filed a motion to dismiss the SEC’s lawsuit against herself and multiple LSU officials because LSU didn’t roster those football players and the issue was “moot.”
Before Luis’ connection to LSU, he was a part of two NBA organizations.
After going undrafted in 2025, he signed a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz in June 2025 before being traded to the Boston Celtics two months later. Luis was waived by the Celtics in October 2025 before signing a deal with its NBA G League affiliate, the Maine Celtics. He was waived by the G League team before the start of the season because of an injury.
Luis averaged 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game at St. John’s during the 2024-25 season, winning Big East Player of the Year honors. He entered the transfer portal but didn’t commit to a new school, deciding to stay in the draft in 2025.
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