Judge Daniel Pruet has denied the request by Charles Bediako's legal team to extend the current Temporary Restraining Order past Friday, Feb. 6. The result of a hearing on that date could be the end of the former and current Alabama basketball player's college career.
Earlier this week, Bediako's lawyers submitted a list of questions for the NCAA to answer, as the justification for a TRO extension. According to the Tuscaloosa News, NCAA lawyers also "accused the plaintiff (Bediako) of shifting positions on whether his case is strong enough to justify emergency relief and said that he 'slept on his rights'."
In addition, the NCAA contends that the original TRO "was 'improvidently granted' and should therefore be canceled, as it should not have been issued without stronger proof." Bediako's legal team was also challenged by the NCAA lawyers for not originally following proper notice requirements and that the current efforts by Bediako's lawyers are "a blatant attempt to delay proceedings" to "participate in more games in which he has no right to participate under NCAA rules."
Alabama Basketball Preparation Challenge
The legal wrangling will be intense on Friday. Alabama basketball must continue preparing to play Auburn on Saturday, without knowing whether Bediako will be available.
Whatever happens in Judge Prevet's courtroom on Friday, the Alabama basketball program has already lost in the opinions of what appears to be a majority of college basketball fans. The distinction of which professional player can compete on a college team is a murky one that the NCAA has done a poor job of defining. An irony is that if Badiako loses in court on Friday, Auburn will compete on Saturday with a former professional player, and Alabama will not. Auburn's Filip Jovic has played for three European professional basketball teams.
This post will be updated as new information becomes available.