Ex-Purdue star Trey Kaufman-Renn granted TRO to return to college basketball in latest eligibility ruling

Trey Kaufman-Renn may be able to play a sixth season of college basketball after all.

The former Purdue star was granted a temporary restraining order against the NCAA on Wednesday, according to the Indianapolis Star. He is just the latest player throughout college sports to receive a similar order in recent weeks and months.

Kaufman-Renn will have a hearing for a preliminary injunction in the future, which would serve as a long-term solution. He will likely need that in order to actually play college basketball this season, at Purdue or elsewhere. That hearing has not been scheduled. His move to return to college came after the NCAA’s new five-in-five rule, which was announced in June — something Kaufman-Renn wasn’t able to benefit from.

Kaufman-Renn played four seasons for Purdue after initially redshirting, and earned all-Big Ten honors during his junior campaign. He averaged 14.2 points and 8.3 rebounds last season with the Boilermakers, who he helped lead to the Elite Eight. Kaufman-Renn was a key piece on their team that reached the national championship game in 2024, too. 

Kaufman-Renn then entered the NBA Draft this past summer, and he was selected in the second round by the Minnesota Timberwolves. He played for them in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, too. But Kaufman-Renn has not signed a professional contract with the Timberwolves yet, and likely wasn’t on track to earn a spot in their active roster this fall.

Even if Kaufman-Renn is granted his preliminary injunction, it’s unclear where he would actually end up. All four power conferences have passed similar rulings recently banning players from returning from the NFL to play at the college level again. Some of those leagues have included basketball in their initial policies, while others are expected to announce that in the future. 

LSU has been at the center of the debate after attempting to add two players who signed NFL contracts, though the Tigers have since backed down. SEC schools are still expected to meet and discuss LSU and its future membership in the league. 

Several players who either played in the G League or entered the draft attempted to return last year. Alabama’s Charles Bediako was perhaps the most notable, but he only appeared in five games before his TRO was overruled. Baylor signed former NBA Draft pick James Nnaji in December, too, but he never played in an NBA game and instead was with FC Barcelona since 2020. Two other former G League players are set to play for programs next season, too.

It’s unclear where Kaufman-Renn plays this season, or if he ends up getting to at all. But the first step on that quest has gone in his favor.