Ex-Northwestern basketball player sues NCAA, Wildcats over 'destructive' transfer rule

Northwestern said it will "vigorously" fight a federal antitrust lawsuit initiated by a former player who wants to abolish the NCAA's rule requiring transfers to sit for a year.

Johnnie Vassar's class-action lawsuit, filed Monday, claims that school officials forced him to surrender his scholarship via misleading and intimidating tactics. Once he left the program, he was subjected to the NCAA's "destructive" rules that require transfers to sit for a year before they're eligible at their next schools, the lawsuit claims.

Vassar, who is not playing for any basketball team this season, and his attorneys seek immediate eligibility for all transfers.

"We do not believe this claim has any legal merit," Al Cubbage, Northwestern's vice president for university relations, said in a statement from the school. "We will defend the University vigorously."

Vassar's class-action lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, on Monday, alleges that Northwestern staffers pushed the Chicago native out of the program after the 2014-15 season because they wanted to use his scholarship for another player.

The following year -- Vassar remained in school -- his athletic scholarship was converted into an academic scholarship so it would not count toward the NCAA's limit of 13 athletic scholarships per team, according to the lawsuit. Prior to that conversion, his lawyers claim, the school and the NCAA disrupted his career because other schools refused to offer him a scholarship because he'd have to miss a year of competition if he transferred.

"We see this destructive double-standard again and again -- non-student-athletes are free to transfer and are eligible for a new scholarship without waiting a year," Steve Berman, the lawyer representing the class of athletes involved in this lawsuit, said in a statement. "Coaches often transfer to the tune of a hefty pay raise. But meanwhile, student-athletes are penalized and forced to sit out a year before they can play elsewhere. The NCAA needs to level the playing field for these thousands of kids who face undue punishment under its senseless bylaws."

The lawsuit claims that Vassar was told he would lose his spot on the team after his freshman season in 2014-15. Team officials, per the lawsuit, then proceeded to deceive Vassar and separate him from his former teammates by putting him on "an 'internship' under which he worked as a janitor instead of permitting him to train and play with his teammates" when they decided they did not want him to remain with the program, thereby obstructing his career and future. Vassar also claims he was asked if he'd take money to leave.

On March 30, 2015, Northwestern coach Chris Collins announced Vassar's decision to transfer.

"Johnnie let us know that he has chosen to pursue another university to continue his career," Collins said in a statement then. "We support his decision and enjoyed having him as a member of the program this season. He is a talented player with a bright future, and we wish him nothing but the best in everything he does going forward."

Vassar then reportedly tweeted that he desired a more "integral" role with a new program after averaging 3.9 minutes per game his freshman season. He thanked Collins for the opportunity.

In the class-action lawsuit filed Monday, however, Vassar claims that he was pressured to a sign a form that said he had volunteered to leave. The suit claims that the NCAA's unfair transfer rules allow coaches to forcefully remove players whenever they want to create an opening for another talent.

After his team's victory over Eastern Washington on Monday, Collins told reporters, "We'll let those things be handled behind closed doors" when asked about the lawsuit.