Nassir Little and UNC's other freshmen are enrolled, but NCAA eligibility is unclear

North Carolina basketball signee Nassir Little is among three prospects who have enrolled at the university and will start summer school, a school spokesperson said.

It is unclear whether Little has been cleared by the NCAA's Clearing House, however.

An athlete who wants to play college sports must first go through a background check that ensures they have met the NCAA's amateurism standards and are academically prepared for college work.

In September, a player who fits Little's description emerged in an FBI investigation into corruption in college basketball. Ten people connected to college basketball and grassroots programs were arrested in connection to two schemes the FBI was investigating. One involved coaches steering players to certain agents. The other involved paying players in exchange for their commitments to certain adidas-sponsored universities.

Documents released by federal prosecutors in September, and then again in April, allege that an adidas executive and others conspired to funnel $150,000 to Little's family in exchange for his commitment to the University of Miami.

Little, a 6-7, 215-pound wing, was a five-start recruit in the Class of 2018. He was ranked No. 3 in the country overall, according to 247sports' Composite rankings. He was also a McDonald's All-American, where he won the game's MVP award.

Miami was among multiple schools interested in Little during his junior season. But Little eventually committed to UNC, a Nike school, a week after the FBI's ongoing investigation was revealed.

Little and his father have denied involvement in the scheme. Miami coach Jim Larrañaga also denied involvement. Little and his father signed sworn affidavits denying that no school offered them money for their commitment, and that they did not take any money.

Little's former AAU coach at 1 Family Hoops, Jonathan Brad Augustine, who was initially described in the documents as the facilitator of the deal, later told prosecutors he had no intentions of giving of any players or their families any of the money he received.

Augustine, who was initially arrested, was dropped from a superseding indictment.

Steve Kirshner, a spokesperson for UNC athletics, would not say whether Little had been cleared through the NCAA's Clearing House process.

"We've never been in the habit of announcing or releasing when incoming student-athletes (either individually or collectively) have successfully or otherwise completed the NCAA clearinghouse process," Kirshner said in an email. "We're not to begin doing that now. If any student-athlete has an eligibility issue with Clearinghouse, then he or she wouldn't play."

Efforts to reach Little's father, Harold Little, were unsuccessful.

Coby White, also a McDonald's All-American, and Rechon Black, a top 100 recruit, have also enrolled. UNC's regular season will begin in November.

In a tweet Tuesday, Nassir Little said, "Chapel hill I'm here!! let's get to work."

This story was originally published June 20, 2018 at 3:41 PM with the headline "Nassir Little and UNC's other freshmen are enrolled, but NCAA eligibility is unclear."