Former pro player’s return to Alabama men’s basketball team sparks a scramble by the NCAA and sport’s coaches

By Dana O’Neil, CNN

(CNN) — NCAA leadership reached out to the National Association of Basketball Coaches to convene for a previously unscheduled call on Friday afternoon to discuss the unprecedented Charles Bediako situation, multiple sources told CNN Sports.

The sources were unsure if the call involved all Division I coaches or just select NABC Board members, but the impetus for the call was clear: Bediako’s participation in games at Alabama.

Later on Friday, NCAA vice president Dan Gavitt released a statement calling for the known, established rules of eligibility to be upheld. Otherwise, the fluidity of player movement “would create an unstable environment for the student-athletes.”

No other details of the call were revealed, nor is there anything stopping the 7-footer from facing the Volunteers in Tuscaloosa on Saturday.

Bediako, who last played for the Crimson Tide in 2023 and has since played in the NBA’s development G League, has been granted a temporary restraining order that will allow him to play against Tennessee. He sought the restraining order after the NCAA denied his request, citing its longstanding rule preventing players who have signed professional contracts from returning to college.

But an Alabama circuit court judge – who is a six-figure donor to a foundation that supports Alabama athletics, as first reported by Front Office Sports – pushed back against the NCAA’s decision, clearing Bediako to play at least until a hearing next week.

Several administrators, including Connecticut athletic director David Benedict, have suggested that the NCAA declare any games in which Bediako competes ineligible. The restraining order, however, specifically says that neither the player nor program can be punished by the NCAA for Bediako’s participation.

“It doesn’t mean the games need to count toward the NCAA Tournament,’’ Benedict told ESPN. “Otherwise throw away the rule book and set it on fire. There are no rules.’’

His coach, Dan Hurley, posted a slightly subtler reaction on his X feed, sharing a clip from the movie “Back To School,” of 65-year-old Rodney Dangerfield declaring he was going to college

Bediako is the second player to find his way back to college after turning pro. James Nnaji, who also played in the G League, has appeared in six games for Baylor.

In response, NCAA president Charlie Baker has forcefully reaffirmed the national governing body’s position.

“The NCAA has not and will not grant eligibility to any prospective or returning student-athletes who have signed an NBA contract (including a two-way contract),” he said in a statement.

Bediako had previously signed such a contract with the San Antonio Spurs.

The judges’ ruling come at a time when college sports are facing yet another critical inflection point, most of it once again coming via the courts. As Bediako challenges amateur rules, Duke is suing its quarterback, Darian Mensah, for attempting to breach his contract and transfer, and Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss is seeking relief for an additional year of college football from a Mississippi court.

This isn’t the first time college basketball coaches have been called for a sort of reckoning. In 2003, the NABC convened a mandatory meeting in Chicago to discuss a wave of scandal in the sport.

The-CNN-Wire
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