Tyon Grant-Foster cleared to practice with Gonzaga while NCAA reviews transfer’s eligibility waiver

The NCAA has cleared Tyon Grant-Foster to practice with Gonzaga while it continues to review his eligibility waiver to determine if the Grand Canyon transfer will be able to compete for Mark Few’s program in 2025-26.

Grant-Foster, the former Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year who committed to the Zags in May, was granted a practice waiver by the NCAA, a source told The Spokesman-Review Wednesday afternoon.

The sport’s governing body still has not approved the player’s competitive eligibility waiver, which was submitted in the spring when Grant-Foster entered the NCAA transfer portal.

Grant-Foster, who played two years at Grand Canyon after previous stops at DePaul, Kansas and Indian Hills Community College, has spent time working out with former college teammates in Phoenix and in his hometown of Kansas City this offseason.

It is unclear when Grant-Foster will be arriving in Spokane or if he will be in attendance for GU’s annual Kraziness in the Kennel showcase, which takes place at 4 p.m. Saturday at McCarthey Athletic Center.

Grant-Foster detailed his decision to commit to Gonzaga during a conversation with The Spokesman-Review in July while attending NBA Summer League with childhood friend and Denver Nuggets guard Christian Braun, highlighting Gonzaga’s winning culture and Few’s coaching pedigree.

At that time, he had not received any updates from the NCAA regarding the timeline of his eligibility waiver, but said he would continue to exercise patience while working out with friends, former teammates and trainers in Phoenix, Kansas City and Las Vegas.

“Just a waiting process, you’ve got to be patient,” Grant-Foster said. “I’ve been through a lot in my life, it ain’t nothing just to wait a little bit.”

Grant-Foster’s eligibility came into question after the guard/forward spent two seasons at Indiana Hills before transferring to Kansas, where he played 22 games during the COVID-19-impacted 2020-21 season. New NCAA rules grant players who competed in junior college an additional year of eligibility, and those who participated at any point during the 2020-21 campaign were given an extra year to compete through a COVID-19 waiver.

Grant-Foster transferred to DePaul ahead of the 2021-22 season, but did not play in a full game after collapsing during halftime of the Blue Demons’ season opener as the result of a heart condition. Medical issues stemming from the heart condition also kept Grant-Foster off the court in 2022-23 before he was cleared to play in 2023-24 at Grand Canyon.

The Kansas City native started in all 34 games he played in for the Antelopes, emerging as one of the top mid-major players in the country while averaging 20.1 points per game and 6.1 rebounds. Grant-Foster earned WAC Player of the Year honors and guided GCU to the NCAA Tournament, where the Antelopes won a first-round game against Saint Mary’s in Spokane before losing to Alabama.

Scattered injuries limited Grant-Foster to just 26 games last season, but he still posted solid numbers while averaging 14.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg and 2.1 apg. The wing led GCU back to the NCAA Tournament, scoring 23 points in a first-round loss to Maryland.

Grant-Foster, who will turn 26 years old before the 2026 NCAA Tournament, told The S-R in July he had been in communication with numerous Gonzaga players, such as Graham Ike and Braden Huff, while waiting on his eligibility waiver.

“They’re getting a player that wants to win,” he said. “Come in, get better. I just feel like we’ve got all the pieces to make a national (championship). I would say it’s probably the most focused I’ll ever be going into the next season.”