Depends on what year school/study you are doing and what level you want to play

To play NCAA div 1 you cannot get any form of payment.

Tai Webster plays for the NZ Breakers & he is going to college next year.

As long as you don't get a financial benefit from the club, such as flights, wages, etc, then you should be safe to play.

I'm not 100% confident, but I think that's reason why Tai plays the home games, because I didn't see his name listed against sydney 2 weeks ago.

Strictly speaking, as long as you don't get paid.

If you don't get paid, you will be fully eligible and colleges will be keen.


You are now, allowed to get some payment as long as it is "essential living costs"...This was the issue of the Enes Kanter case.

But don't even accept "essential living cost" payments because it will just turn colleges away as they don't want to deal with eligibility issues (UK only did it with Kanter because he was such a huge recruit)

The NCAA has a habit of changing rules now and then, catching people out occasionally.

Anyone who accepts any payments whatsoever could live to regret it over a four year college scholarship.

May not be year one or two but later on, so I for one will be making sure to check with the authorities every year and not take the risk.

Go and play SEABL but do it for the experience and exposure, avoid payments at all costs (pardon the pun), then go to college a little older and wiser...

Would not rely on answers here - I would be checking with your future college or aid they would be right up to date

Hugh Greenwood played with the Hobart Chargers before his New Mexico stint began. Was also a chance to suit up when he returned during mid-year break.

His sister played all last year with the Lady Chargers and she's off to NM next year.

Sorry ais - previous typo

Tai Webster is an uncontracted development player. As development players are not payed nor travel he is fine as was Isaac Fotu. Steven Adams played NZBL as an unpaid rookie and is still eligible. Pretty sure if you google NCAA participation rules the magical interweb will answer your question.

Most of these comments are correct in the general sense, regarding payment, but you should definitely be contacting your club, a state basketball official or inquire with the college(s) you would likely be applying to. Maybe even try contacting the NCAA or Basketball Australia?

100% agree with Mo. You shouldn't be asking this kind of question on a forum. If you are truly serious about going to college, you need to go through the official channels and get something done in writing. Make sure you're the one getting the info and not someone else too, because in some cases it may appear as though you have someone representing you (ie an agent) and thus you lose eligibility.

Mystro, has Webster played for them at all? At some point I think it was the case that if you stepped onto the court for playing time, you were due a minimum match payment ($700 or whatever it was at the time).

Maybe some college eligibility links directly from the Basketball Australia web site may be in order, by the sounds of it there is no direct pathway identified for people to get simple and current answers...

Always a good idea to seek someone who has just been through the process and have a good old chat to them, face to face!

yup Tai has played garbage minutes a few times this season, in his first game he fluffed a dunk in the open court and has even managed to get some minutes with Corey. Isaac Fotu also played a few mins last season as a development player before heading to the UH Warriors.

AIS players go from SEABL to NCAA every year e.g. Daniel Kickett, wins SEABL All Star 5, then heads to St.Marys, same with Patty Mills

Another question.. can you go to NCAA div 1 if you're 2 years out of year 12 or do you have to go to a community college?????

AIS is/was essentially classified as a residential High School by the NCAA clearing house.

NCAA rules do change on a fairly regular basis.

Within the last 15 years there were enforced NCAA rules thriough which people who played on OZ teams which paid other players ( but not them) to play in the same team were rulled ineligible. Eg SA top open competitions, VBA , SEABL etc. Also in some of those years people who simply played in a league where other teams played some players were ruled ineligible.

CJ Bruton was a good exmple.

My daughter is now playing Div 1 in the US as a fresh(wo)man and in the past two years has played SEABL and QBL over the past two years.

Salient points:
- Redshirting is different to losing eligibility. Redhsirting means you can't play but can practice and study but don't lose any eligibility. Most players get four years of eligibility.
- You can now play at any level as long as you don't accept payment or rewards in excess of the costs of participating - ie, you can fly, travel, stay in hotels, have meals provided but not beyond what they deem to be real costs. This has been introduced to allow the foreigners (like our kids) to play at a level where people are paid without affecting their eligibility.
- the trade-off is you must enrol at your first opportunity or not play (I call it the Andrew Gaze rule) which is meant to combat the foreigners who could notionally play unpaid for five years in an elite competition and then head to the US with full eligibility intact. This means if you finished school in 2012, you must enrol in August 2013 or stop playing organised basketball in November 2013 in order to maintain eligibility.
- academic eligibility is another question altogether as you really need to put this plan in place prior to starting Year 9 (you need four years across basic areas and some other stuff) and took me an eternity to get sorted even though we were wielding an SAT in the 1300s (required a 780 to be eligible for her school).

Its pretty straightforward and there are a number of credible providers who can provide guidance on the issue for you. Start with the NCAA Clearinghouse and don't necessarily trust the school which is recruting you - they have as much trouble keeping track of the rules as we do.

Hope that helps.

Some real food for thought in last few posts. It is not an easy process and yes, the rewards can be quite high, however if you are not quite sure about the University you may be keen on then look further as there are many more out there.

Lots of basketballers start in a Div 2 College and if they can show some good form they can move to a Div 1.

Many options out there, so there is no need to rush your decision, however get in early and do your homework because without due dilligence you can trip over the many obstacles along the way...

Tom Abercrombie was ready to throw the towel in after his US College experience.

My son played SEABL Championship for two years straight out of U18's. He was recruited because of his SEABL experience as he didn't have a National profile prior to playing SEABL. Chances are he wouldn't have been given a Division 1 offer and was signed early. He signed November in his Year 12 year.
Tips:
Play because you love it.
Don't get any pay for playing (SEABL will pay for uniforms, flights, hotels meals etc).
Sit your SAT early.
Enrol in the Clearing House asap.
Good luck!

AnonymousToo, when you say enrol at the clearance house asap, would starting year 11 be too early?