A return to college basketball has just become a lot harder for athletes who have already played at the professional level. The Big Ten has now announced a new rule that will likely close the door on basketball players who are looking to play at the collegiate level after pursuing opportunities at the next stage, as the Big Ten follows its football rules from a month ago.

In an announcement on its website, the Big Ten explained that the conference has unanimously adopted a new rule prohibiting pro basketball players from returning to college basketball after professional experience. The rule targets only players with professional experience in the NBA, G League, or WNBA, not all professional leagues.

“The Big Ten Conference announced Monday the unanimous adoption of a conference rule to prohibit men’s and women’s basketball players who have signed a professional contract with the NBA, G-League or WNBA or any team that is a member of any such league, were on a roster for an NBA, G-League or WNBA team at any point or declared for the NBA or WNBA Draft but did not withdraw or declare an intent to return to college within the required timeframe, from maintaining eligibility for athletic competition at a conference institution,” the post read.

“The conference continues to evaluate potential rules restricting professional athletes in other sports from conference competition.”

This basketball ban follows a similar August ruling that barred pro football players from returning to the Big Ten. According to ESPN, on August 25, the conference had ruled that any player who had declared for the NFL draft, appeared on an NFL roster, or signed a contract with a pro league would not be able to play for any program in the conference.

The new rule comes at a notable time for college sports. Back in June, the NCAA changed its eligibility criteria to allow athletes to play for five seasons within five years, and subsequently faced multiple lawsuits from athletes who were unable to compete for a fifth season.

In response to the NCAA’s June eligibility change and subsequent lawsuits, several conferences, including the SEC, ACC, and Big 12, began issuing their own pro-player bans, focusing mainly on football players.

The ACC’s announcement prohibiting pros also included the NBA, the G League, and the WNBA, something the Big 10 are now following.

On August 28, Dallas District Court Judge Martin Hoffman ruled that the SEC could not block 41 athletes, including two former WNBA players, from returning to college. It was ruled by Dallas District Court Judge Martin Hoffman.

This included Bailey Maupin, who was with the Golden State Valkyries during training camp in April, and Christeen Iwuala, who was signed by the Washington Mystics on a rookie-scale contract. Neither of them ever played in a WNBA game.

“As long as they would have been eligible to continue playing college sports in the following semester if they had a fifth year of eligibility, they are eligible today,” Hoffman’s judgment read.

These cases illustrate the type of athlete the Big Ten’s new rule is designed to exclude, while giving the conference a cautionary example to keep in mind.

NCAA Pushes Congress to Close the Door on Pro Athletes Returning to College

The Big Ten’s decision comes as the NCAA itself has pushed back against the series of court rulings that allow athletes with pro experience to have another try at college sports. In a statement released in August, the NCAA argued that these rulings can destabilize the system of college sports.

“The lawyers bringing these cases seemingly won’t be satisfied until every professional athlete can treat college sports as a fallback option, regardless of the opportunities it strips from both those who will never have a chance to begin their collegiate sports experience and those who are currently on campus working out with the team and attending classes,” the statement read.

“Thankfully, Congress can right this wrong by passing the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act and ensure student-athletes can have a level playing field with rules that apply fairly to everyone.”

The Protect College Sports Act, introduced by Sens. Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell, looks to establish a set of rules and regulations to help bring uniformity to college sports. Among its provisions, which govern NIL deals, the transfer portal, and antitrust regulations, is also a clause that prevents former pros from coming back to college.

Under Section 113, “Eligibility to Participate in Intercollegiate Sports,” one of the criteria to be able to participate at the collegiate level is that they are not a professional athlete.

Only time will tell if the bill will pass House approval and the impact it will have on college basketball.