By David Okula (@david16okula)
NEW YORK — On the eve of its first exhibition of the season against Drexel, St. John’s had a potentially season-changing day off the court Tuesday, with point guard Quinn Ellis being officially ruled eligible by the NCAA and forward Keyshawn Hall having his temporary restraining order upheld.
The two significant pieces of news, which were reported within about 10 minutes of each other, mean that the Red Storm will have its entire roster eligible for Wednesday’s exhibition. While Hall still has to wait on his eligibility status for the full season, any questions surrounding Ellis have been alleviated.
It’s been a long wait for Ellis to officially be cleared by the NCAA, as he was the Red Storm’s first addition of the offseason all the way back in April. Ellis, a 23-year-old from Sheffield, England, has played seven seasons of professional basketball in Italy, including a breakout campaign in the EuroLeague last year.
It was no secret that the missing piece of the St. John’s Sweet 16 team from a season ago was consistency at the point guard position, which is a problem that Ellis should help immediately solve. He showcased impressive playmaking abilities against top professional competition in Europe, averaging 4.5 assists per game with Olimpia Milano in 2025-26. Beyond what Ellis can bring to the table individually, a huge aspect of him being eligible is the positive impact he can have for his teammates. For example, Ian Jackson, who spent most of last year playing out of position at point guard, can now return to his natural position of shooting guard and will have an excellent facilitator setting him up with scoring opportunities.
As for Hall, he is now in a similar position to teammate Babacar Sane, as they have both received slight wins in court over the past week while they continue to wait and see what their eligibility status will be for the entirety of the season. Both players had their TROs remain in effect, meaning they are eligible to play while the court takes more time to make an official decision. However, unlike Sane, who was given another court date next month, the court gave Hall no timeline for when they might come to a decision.
Hall is a 6-foot-7-inch forward that committed to St. John’s in late August and was brought in to essentially be a replacement for Donnie Freeman, who suffered a season-ending Achilles injury during preseason workouts. Hall has been at four different schools over the past four seasons, most recently averaging 19.3 points per game and 7.1 rebounds per game at Auburn last year. He has collected accolades at each of his past three stops, earning all-Atlantic 10 second team honors with George Mason in 2023-24, all-Big 12 second team with UCF in 2024-25 and all-SEC third team last season at Auburn.
While questions still loom about the revamped Red Storm roster, Tuesday was an important step in the right direction after all the uncertainty around the team over the past few weeks and months. Both Ellis and Hall are expected to slot into the starting five, alongside Jackson, Tounde Yessoufou and Ruben Prey.
With its full roster eligible for the time being, the attention can now turn to how the Red Storm look on the court as opposed to updates from the courtroom, as St. John’s fans will get their first preview of the team against Drexel at Carnesecca Arena on Wednesday.
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