A Louisiana judge just gave the NCAA another black eye - and handed LSU a star
A Baton Rouge court ruled Monday in favor of RJ Luis Jr., the 2025 Big East Player of the Year, clearing him to suit up for LSU despite having signed NBA contracts. The decision could open a new path for professional players to return to college basketball.
In brief
A Louisiana judge just gave the NCAA another black eye - and handed LSU a star
The hearing ran nearly six hours inside the 19th Judicial District Courthouse in Baton Rouge. When it was over, RJ Luis Jr. walked out smiling.
A Louisiana judge on Monday granted Luis, the 2025 Big East Player of the Year, a temporary injunction to play for LSU this season despite signing multiple NBA contracts. The ruling by Judge Ronald Johnson in East Baton Rouge Parish was the outcome LSU and Luis had spent months working toward, and it landed like a punch on a governing body that has struggled all summer to hold its eligibility lines.
After starring for St. John's in 2024-25 and securing second-team All-American honors, Luis went undrafted in the 2025 NBA draft. He signed a two-way contract with the Jazz, and then an Exhibit 10 contract with the Celtics' G League affiliate after he was traded from Utah to Boston and later waived. Luis appeared in three preseason games with the Celtics before he was waived and inked an Exhibit 10 deal to play for their G-League affiliate, the Maine Celtics, but he missed all of last season with an injury. He never played a single regular-season game at any professional level.
That last fact was central to the argument his attorneys made in court. "What we have today is a decision by a judge to protect the future of a young man who has done nothing wrong," attorney Elliot Abrams said after the ruling. His co-counsel, Tony Clayton, went further. Clayton said the decision could set a precedent at the collegiate level. "It's monumental. I just think the NCAA has to follow this precedent here, that you've got to treat these kids the same, period," he said.
Luis committed to LSU on May 19 while pursuing another season of college eligibility. The situation put Will Wade - back at LSU after stints at McNeese and NC State - in an unusual position: building a roster that depended in part on the courts. The move is a significant addition for Wade and LSU, which had just four players on its official roster earlier this month. Wade was in the courtroom Monday and hugged Luis after the verdict came down.
The player himself is no marginal prospect chasing one last paycheck. Luis, a 6-foot-7 wing, averaged 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds during the 2024-25 season. His arrival immediately raises the ceiling for LSU, which also has commitments from former UCLA teammates Donovan Dent and Skyy Clark. In the SEC, those numbers would make him one of the most dangerous wings in the conference on day one.
This is bigger than Luis and LSU
The NCAA fought this one hard. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, in a court filing, spoke out against Luis and Kentucky commit Mark Mitchell, who had signed an Exhibit 10 contract before a local judge on Saturday cleared him to play. Sankey argued that maintaining eligibility rules was "essential to the integrity of college sports," according to Saturday Down South.
The NCAA has been losing this battle in state courts all summer. On Friday, the NCAA won its motion to reverse a federal preliminary injunction in Colorado that had created a blanket waiver for players in the 2022 high school class to play a fifth season. But it has lost the majority of cases at the state level in those eligibility cases.
Luis's situation, though, is different from the fifth-year eligibility wave. Luis is not a fifth-year player. His case, however, could create a new pipeline of players who have signed professional contracts and want to make their way back to college basketball and the millions of dollars available to them if they do. That is the piece that has college administrators genuinely rattled.
Luis' case could create a new influx of players who have signed professional contracts, even if they were in school years ago, to compete again at the collegiate level. The NCAA will likely fight this case. If the organization wants to continue its efforts to prevent Luis from playing this upcoming season, it can request a 'stay to pause the injunction' or utilize other methods as the clock ticks until the season begins.
NCAA president Charlie Baker had drawn a clear line back in December. "The NCAA has not and will not grant eligibility to any prospective or returning student-athletes who have signed an NBA contract (including a two-way contract)," Baker said in a statement. Monday's ruling stepped right over that line.
Wade's gamble is paying off - for now
Will Wade's return to LSU has been nothing if not aggressive. Wade has been unabashed this cycle with his roster-building efforts. LSU reportedly has a $5 million deal on the table for Israeli point guard Yam Madar, among other moves. Recruiting Luis knowing the odds were against him legally was the boldest swing of all.
It worked. Wade will have to rely on the courts to support his roster this season, as the bulk of his players will need court rulings to play - court rulings that could be challenged, potentially jeopardizing the standing of those players in the months ahead. That uncertainty hangs over everything. The injunction is temporary. The NCAA's next move could come any day.
For now, Luis is in. Judge Ronald Johnson oversaw Luis' lawsuit against the NCAA at the 19th Judicial District Courthouse in Baton Rouge on Monday, with the final verdict being revealed over five hours later. Attorney Clayton said: "I didn't want to hug him too long because I didn't want to cry. But I felt a big relief lift off that kid's shoulders."
Luis started at UMass, transferred to St. John's under Rick Pitino, went through the draft, bounced between Utah and Boston, sat out a full season hurt, and ended up in a Baton Rouge courtroom fighting for the right to play college basketball again. Now he'll try to do it in the SEC, in a Pete Maravich Assembly Center that will be watching closely - assuming the injunction survives whatever the NCAA files next.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
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He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
