LSU announces transfer guard Jalen Cook eligibility waiver denied by NCAA

LSU men’s basketball received some crushing news on Wednesday, announcing that Tulane transfer Jalen Cook had his immediate eligibility waiver denied.

Cook actually began his career with the Tigers in the 2020-21 season when Will Wade was still head coach, but transferred to Tulane for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, where he found great success. After posting averages of 19.9 points per game and 4.9 assists per game this past year, Cook hit the portal for a second time and chose to return to Baton Rouge.

However, since it was his second transfer and Cook has not graduated yet after just three years in school, NCAA rules require him to earn a waiver in order to become immediately illegible and not have to sit out for a year. Per LSU, his waiver has been denied, but the program will continue to fight for his eligibility in 2023-24.

Here was the school’s statement on the matter:

A Statement From LSU Athletics On Men’s Basketball Student-Athlete Jalen Cook: pic.twitter.com/BvXv6ujAaa

— LSU Basketball (@LSUBasketball) November 1, 2023

If Cook is indeed ruled ineligible for the entire year, his loss is immense for the Tigers and head coach Matt McMahon in his second year. The SEC is as competitive and loaded top-to-bottom as it ever as been this season, and LSU is already starting behind the gun having finished dead last in the league a year ago at just 2-16.

This past offseason, McMahon completely refurbished the lineup, knowing he had to draw transfers from some stronger leagues than his former Ohio Valley Conference, where a number of Murray State defects came from with him in the spring of ’22. The grand prize among the new haul in 2023: Tulane’s Jalen Cook, a two-time All-AAC performer and the Green Wave’s lead passer and scorer — a true point guard to run the show for McMahon.

Luckily, there were others. Carlos Stewart is a sharpshooter who finished as the second-leading scorer on a terrific Herb Sendek team at Santa Clara last year. Plus, there’s also a chiseled SEC veteran starter in Jordan Wright from Vanderbilt, who can fill in at the three or four. Meanwhile, the efficient and versatile Will Baker comes in from Nevada to offer a scoring punch at the five.

Overall, it’s a necessary and strong group of transfers, but without Cook, it’s hard to imagine the Tigers making it to the NCAA Tournament on the back of a 14th place finish in last year’s SEC.