Gonzaga’s chase for a starting point guard just got a whole lot more intriguing, and maybe a little cleaner, too.
Xaivian Lee, a transfer target for the Bulldogs, has been added as one of 24 new plaintiffs in the California lawsuit filed by seniors seeking a fifth year of eligibility. Lee spent three years at Princeton and last season at Florida, and now he’s in the same case as another Gonzaga target, former UCLA guard Donovan Dent, along with former Zag women’s basketball guard Ines Bettencourt.
The list of added plaintiffs also includes former Pacific, Pepperdine and Arizona State point guard Moe Odum, NC State guard Tre Holloman, BYU big man Keba Keita, St. John’s sharpshooter Oziyah Sellers, and former San Diego State, Virginia and Maryland forward Elijah Saunders.
New plaintiffs have been added to the California eligibility suit, per attorneys @heitner and @TexasTrialGroup: Elijah Saunders, Oziyah Sellers, Moe Odum, Tre Holloman, Takai Simpkins, Keba Keita, Xaivian Lee, Scotty Washington, Chisom Okpara, Iaroslav Niagara, Kimani Hamilton,… https://t.co/6EV5Czuc9H
Lee had already been granted eligibility by the Colorado ruling earlier this month, as did every player in the class of 2022. But that decision came with a catch: it did not automatically give players the right to transfer unless they had entered the portal during the April 7-21 window. Lee did not, which left him only eligible to return to Florida.
The NCAA has appealed that Colorado ruling, trying to overturn it and block those players from taking the floor in 2026-27. If the appeal succeeds, any player whose eligibility depends solely on that case could see it wiped away.
The state-by-state lawsuits, though, have been a different story. Cases in Ohio, Georgia and Tennessee have gone the athletes’ way and have allowed immediate eligibility plus the freedom to transfer. That is why Gonzaga’s two recent seniors - Chauncey Wiggins from Georgia and Javon Bennett from Ohio - are currently eligible.
The California case has been pending for nearly a month, but the expectation is that it will track the same path as Ohio, Georgia and Tennessee. If that happens, Dent, Lee and the other 60-plus plaintiffs would be allowed to play next season wherever they choose.
There’s another wrinkle with Lee, too. His time with the Cleveland Cavaliers in NBA Summer League is not automatically a problem - Wiggins played with the Celtics - but if Lee signed an Exhibit 10 contract with Cleveland, the NCAA could try to use that against him.
That issue likely gets folded into the California case as well, since Lee is not the only plaintiff facing that question. If so, it could make the NCAA’s case even tougher.
For Gonzaga, the timing matters. The Bulldogs are still looking for a point guard for the final open roster spot, even after adding Bennett last week. Lee and Dent have been the two names most tied to that search, and now both could be protected by eligibility rulings at the same time if the California suit breaks for the players.
That leaves Gonzaga in a stronger position to land one of the two guards once the court case is decided. The judge has not set a date for a ruling, and the addition of 24 plaintiffs could slow things down further, but the bigger picture is simple: this is a positive development for a Zags team many believe is still one star guard away from looking like a true national championship contender in 2026-27.
In Other News...
Mark Few Still Has One Big Gonzaga Rotation Problem
Gonzaga has already added two veteran pieces for next season in fifth-year seniors Javon Bennett and Chauncey Wiggins, and both are expected to have real roles when Mark Few starts sorting out the rotation. Even with those commitments in place, the Bulldogs depth chart is still more of a sketch than a finished roster, especially with the guard spots and frontcourt minutes still needing to be mapped out.
The biggest issue is that Few cannot finalize much until the status of Nathan de Sousa and Izan Almansa is settled, and even then the picture could change if Gonzaga keeps looking for help at point guard. For now, the Bulldogs have enough names to project a competitive group, but not enough clarity to know exactly who will be on the floor when the season begins. [Read more 🡒]