Judge rules Charles Bediako no longer eligible to play for Crimson Tide

Tuscaloosa County Circuit Judge Daniel Pruet ruled on Monday that University of Alabama center Charles Bediako was no longer eligible to play for the Crimson Tide.

A different judge who later recused himself granted the former NBA G League player immediate eligibility to rejoin Alabama's basketball team in January.

Bediako filed a lawsuit in Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court against the NCAA, seeking to play for the Crimson Tide again was briefly successful. A judge granted a TRO allowing him to play for five SEC games until Monday’s legal setback. The case caught the nation’s attention as an example of the further professionalization of college athletics. Proponents of letting Bediako play argued that many college teams already have foreign players with professional experience.

Bediako, a seven-footer who played for the Tide in the 2022-2023 season before entering the NBA Draft, averaged 4.4 points per game for the Motor City Cruise in the G League. According to the complaint, he's currently enrolled at the University of Alabama.

Pruet said in a filing on Monday denying a preliminary injunction against the NCAA requested by Bediako, “The Plaintiff has failed to establish that he would suffer irreparable harm absent the issuance of the injunction. In his pleadings and at the hearing, the Plaintiff offered two general examples of the harm he fears he would suffer unless the Court issued the injunction: that he would miss out on financial opportunities enjoyed by collegiate athletes and that he would be deprived of what could be colloquially described as the "college experience."” 

“Neither example demonstrates that the Plaintiff would be irreparably harmed without receiving injunctive relief. Primarily, the Plaintiff asserted that, without the Court issuing the injunction, he would not be able to enjoy the financial benefits related to revenue sharing opportunities afforded collegiate athletes. That argument is without merit. Any lost income is reasonably quantifiable and thus not irreparable. (See Black's Law Dictionary's defining irreparable as "an injury that cannot be adequately measured or compensated by money...".) Further, the Plaintiff's playing professional basketball in the G League as recently as last month indicates that the case is not about whether Plaintiff can be paid to play basketball, but for whom,” Pruet said in the filing. “The Plaintiff also asserted that he would suffer irreparable harm by missing out on the "college experience." There is no proof in the record that, but for an athletic scholarship, the Plaintiff cannot afford to attend college. If the Plaintiff wishes to pursue a degree, he is free to do so. The Court has been presented no evidence demonstrating that the Plaintiff would be prevented from attending the University of Alabama unless the Court issued the injunction.”

Alabama head coach Nate Oats said on Monday he was “super disappointed" in the ruling.

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