College basketball fans were already frustrated after some recent developments in the last month, where professional athletes are coming back to college. And just when they were finishing processing them, a rumor only added more fuel to the fire. The rumor? NBA guard Amari Bailey signed with BYU. But is there any truth to it?

With some eligibility battles reopening doors that once seemed permanently closed, Bailey’s name already sits at the center of one of the most controversial conversations in the NCAA. So when Scott Hughes, a ‘Credentialed men’s college basketball reporter,’ as per their bio, posted this rumor, it quickly went viral, sending the fans into panic mode.

Think about it for a second. An NBA player with three years of professional experience joining a program midseason? That would panic anyone.

However, this update has been debunked by fans who took to the community notes on X and revealed that Hughes “is a parody account pretending to be a college basketball insider.” Moreover, Joe Tipton, a national basketball reporter for On3, also reported this rumor to be false. He confirmed that Amari Bailey’s agents at Momentous Sports Partners dismissed the claim outright, shutting down speculation of any agreement or signing.

“This report is obviously false, per his agents at @MomentousSP,” Tipton wrote.

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Furthermore, there has been no official announcement from BYU itself, Bailey, or any NCAA program suggesting a commitment from the professional player. So the viral claim appears to be nothing more than social media misinformation spreading amid an already volatile eligibility debate. But if you are wondering why the rumor even started in the first place, here is everything you need to know about the Bailey situation.

Why the Amari Bailey rumor felt real to many

Though the rumor itself has no truth to it, the reason his name is trending in college basketball circles stems from the fact that he wants to join this league again.

And he isn’t the first to do something like this either. In the last two months:

• James Nnaji was allowed back into college basketball to play for Baylor even after he went professional because he never signed an official NBA contract or played in an NBA game.
• Charles Bediako got a temporary restraining order from the courts just to suit up again and play for Alabama, after he spent the last three years in the G League.

So at a time when the line between student-athletes and professional players seems like a blur, Bailey decided to throw his hat in as well. But unlike Nnaji or Bediako, he has actually played in the NBA.

Selected as the No. 41 overall pick by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2023 NBA Draft, Amari Bailey made 10 career appearances during his rookie season, where he averaged 2.3 points in 6.5 minutes per game. Now, as a 21-year-old, he has hired both an agent and an attorney to challenge NCAA eligibility rules, arguing that returning to college could help reset his development and public perception.

So, while Bailey has not signed with BYU, the fact that so many fans believed the rumor should tell you how messy everything is. College basketball is entering a phase where once-unthinkable scenarios no longer feel impossible. And until the NCAA draws a clearer line on eligibility, every new case like Bailey’s will continue to break the fans’ spirit.