The St. Joseph’s men’s basketball team will no longer participate in this season’s Players Era event in Las Vegas following Billy Lange’s departure from the program, the school announced Saturday.

The school’s participation in the made-for-NIL event that features high-major programs was tied to Lange being the men’s basketball coach. Lange is longtime friends with Seth Berger, one of the event’s organizers.

“While we are obviously disappointed for our team and our fans to be removed from the Players Era Showcase, we knew from the beginning that our invitation and participation was contingent on Billy Lange being our head coach and proceeded with that risk,” wrote Athletic Director Jill Bodensteiner in a press release. “We are moving on our contingency plan and are excited to announce those games soon.”

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Lange stepped down Wednesday, eight weeks before the 2025-26 season tips off, to leave for a job with the New York Knicks. St. Joe’s elevated former Penn head coach Steve Donahue, hired earlier this year by Lange to be the associate head coach, as the program’s new coach.

The Hawks had previously been placed in a side portion of the Vegas event and were scheduled to play UNLV and Syracuse.

The Players Era tournament, which debuted last season, awards each participating team with a reported $1 million in NIL funds. It’s unclear how much money St. Joe’s was guaranteed in the side showcase event. The Hawks were also scheduled to be in the 2026 event.

The canceling of two games this late in the process leaves St. Joe’s with two holes on its schedule, which Bodensteiner said will be filled soon.