TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Alabama coach Nate Oates said Friday that Charles Bediaco will play against Tennessee on Saturday, even though he called the NCAA system that allows pro players to return to college “broken.”
“We plan on playing him,” Oats said. “He is eligible to compete. We will comply with the court order.”
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Bediako, 23, practiced with the 17th-ranked Crimson Tide one day after a judge in Tuscaloosa temporarily reinstated the player’s college eligibility and blocked the NCAA from retaliating against his return.
Bediaco entered the 2023 NBA Draft but was not selected. The 7-footer has since signed several NBA developmental contracts, including last week playing for the NBA G League’s Motor City Cruise.
He spent two seasons (2021-23) at the University of Alabama, averaging 6.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, and helped the Crimson Tide reach the NCAA tournament twice. Earlier this week, he sued the NCAA in an effort to have his college eligibility reinstated. The NCAA rejected Alabama’s initial petition.
But James H. Roberts Jr. of Tuscaloosa Circuit Court issued a temporary restraining order against Bediaco on Thursday and said he was “immediately eligible” to participate in all team activities. Roberts also ruled that the NCAA may not “threaten, impose, attempt to impose, imply or imply any penalty or sanction” against Bediaco, the Crimson Tide or its coaches and players.
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Temporary orders are valid for 10 days. A full hearing on Bediako’s request for a preliminary injunction is scheduled for Tuesday.
“First of all, the system is clearly broken,” Oates said. “I’m all for trying to figure this out. But now that the NCAA has allowed pros to compete … you tell me how I’m supposed to tell Charles and the team that we’re not going to support them when he’s deemed legally eligible to play.”
Oates pointed to Baylor’s James Nagy as the catalyst in Bediaco’s decision to return. Nagy also entered the 2023 NBA Draft and was selected by Detroit with the 31st overall pick in the first round. He has never signed an NBA contract and has spent the past few seasons playing for FC Barcelona in the EuroLeague. In December, he became eligible to play for Baylor University.
“I know they’re trying to differentiate between the Charles case and some of the other cases,” Oates said. “Don’t know how you tell a guy who played four years in the EuroLeague that he’s eligible to come because the EuroLeague is a much higher level than the G-League and because Charles chose to go to an academic institution in the first place when other players chose to go the pro route, Charles is going to be punished.
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“In effect, it provides very favorable treatment to international players and penalizes American players who choose to attend academic institutions, and we are in the NCAA, which is a collection of academic institutions.”
NCAA coaches have questioned Alabama’s decision to welcome Bediako back and the judge’s decision to grant a TRO.
Florida State coach Todd Golden called Roberts an Alabama supporter during the school’s weekly radio show Thursday night, concluding with “We’re going to beat them no matter what.” Alabama visits No. 16 Florida State on Feb. 1.
“I do think there’s a lot of positive talk about it right now,” Golden said Friday. “We do need some intervention/someone to say, ‘Hey, this is why it’s okay; this is why it’s bad.’ Right now, we’re just sitting in a no-man’s land where everyone has an opinion but feels like there’s nothing they can do because a judge ruled like this in Tuscaloosa, which to me is a little crazy because he can influence what the NCAA does with its organization and what the SEC does with its conference. I think that’s dangerous.”
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Tennessee coach Rick Barnes also knows where he stands heading into Saturday’s road game.
“When you choose to give up college eligibility, you’ve given up,” Barnes said. “I don’t care if someone served, come back. Once they start the clock and make their choice, they’ve made their choice.”
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