Syracuse transfer Amarri Monroe reportedly files lawsuit against NCAA
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Syracuse men’s basketball transfer Amarri Monroe has filed a lawsuit against the NCAA to gain an additional year of eligibility and play for the Orange this season, Syracuse.com’s Mike Waters reported Monday.
Steven Eychner, an attorney with the Newman & Lickstein law firm in Syracuse, filed a lawsuit against the NCAA in state Supreme Court in Onondaga County on Monday on behalf of Monroe.
Monroe already played four years of college basketball, including the last three as a standout at Quinnipiac. He averaged 15.6 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game for the Bobcats last season, earning All-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference First Team honors. He was the MAAC Player of the Year in 2024-25.
The 6-foot-7 forward announced he was transferring to SU on Aug. 4 on the heels of the preliminary injunction in the class action lawsuit granting the high school class of 2022 players a fifth year of eligibility.
During the offseason, the NCAA established a 5-in-5 rule that streamlines player eligibility to a maximum of five seasons, but it didn’t apply to players in the 2022 class like Monroe, whose eligibility had expired after four years.
Monroe’s case has been assigned to Supreme Court Justice Jean Marie Westlake.
“I want to play basketball,” Monroe wrote in a signed affidavit attached to the lawsuit.
“I have spent the last four years developing as a college basketball player and believe another season at Syracuse would give me an opportunity to continue that development, compete at the highest level of Division I basketball, and demonstrate my abilities on a national stage.”
Monroe was previously part of a class-action lawsuit filed in Colorado, which led to a temporary restraining order for the 5-in-5 rules to apply to the class of 2022. However, a federal appeals court struck that decision down, ruling Monroe and other athletes ineligible.
Monday’s lawsuit is the latest attempt for Monroe to be eligible for this upcoming basketball season. The lawsuit also revealed Quinnipiac filed a hardship waiver on behalf of Monroe in April, which was denied.
The waiver request was due to unspecified “significant hardships” incurred during the 2022-23 season at Wofford, court records show. The denial was appealed and rejected again in July.
“Syracuse wants me to join its men’s basketball program for the 2026-27 academic year,” Monroe said in court records, “and I want to attend Syracuse, pursue a graduate degree, and compete for its basketball team.”
Monroe also stressed his desire for a quick decision on his fate.
“Every day that passes matter,” Monroe said in court records.
“I am ready and want to participate with the team immediately and the team is willing to have me join immediately upon my requested relief being granted.”
