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Villanova's Wright: The next year in college basketball will be 'volatile'

Michael Hickey / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Between the effects of the coronavirus pandemic and new player profit rules likely being in place for 2021-22, Villanova head coach Jay Wright knows change is on the horizon in college basketball.

"Think about next basketball season," Wright told Jon Rothstein on the "College Hoops Today" Podcast. "We're going to deal with the fact that any player that plays this year as a senior can come back and play another year.

"We're going to have the first year that players can benefit off their name, image, and likeness. And we're probably going to have the first year that any player can transfer one time without having to sit out a year. It’s really going to be volatile next year in college basketball."

Due to the pandemic, the NCAA gave student-athletes an extra year of eligibility last spring. Yet it's the name, image, and likeness (NIL) issue that could radically change how college basketball works, finally allowing players to profit off their high profiles.

"I think the name, image, and likeness issue is going to be the wild, wild, west until everybody figures it out," Wright added. "Everyone likes to take shots at the NCAA, but it's partly the NCAA's fault and all of ours too that it’s taken so long to get to this point. But this is being forced on all of us without having the time to prepare for all of it."

The NCAA plans to vote on the NIL measure no later than January, with new rules instituted for the 2021-22 season.

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