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Should semipro/college players be paid, or allowed to sell their stuff? (NIL and Revenue Sharing)
- By Jaxbuck
- College Football
- 1643 Replies
I had an old college football preview from SI, maybe 1988 or 1989 saying the same thing.
Some of this talk about old institutions failing to adapt is correct. I wish OSU was moving "faster" but I am not privy to all the info and constraints they are. My ringside seat it doesn't look like OSU is all that far off the mark and recency bias aside, this "new generation" is going to have to show some staying power before I'll say the king is dead.
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Professional Players Returning to College
- By ScriptOhio
- Buckeye Basketball
- 3 Replies
Apparently, there is another one now:
https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nca...arles-bediako-return/7ad2398e9992206c9529ad72
Former Alabama basketball center Charles Bediako has been granted a temporary restraining order against the NCAA, making him immediately eligible to rejoin the Crimson Tide. Despite having spent the last three seasons in the NBA G League, a Tuscaloosa County judge ruled on Wednesday that the 7-footer can return to the college basketball court and play this Saturday against Tennessee.
This is not the first case of a player with pro experience coming back to college basketball, most notably James Nnaji, who joined Baylor in the middle of the season. Bediako’s legal team used the Nnaji precedent to argue a "double standard," claiming the NCAA unfairly favors international professionals over domestic G League players. While the NCAA maintains that Bediako’s three previous NBA-related contracts (including a two-way deal with the Spurs) make him ineligible, the court's intervention ensures that, at least for now, the Crimson Tide will have their rim protector back for the heat of SEC play.
Who is Charles Bediako?
Bediako is a 7-foot Canadian center who became a household name for Alabama basketball fans during his two-season stint from 2021 to 2023.
Known as a rim-protecting specialist, he was a core piece of the 2023 team that earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. He was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team in 2022 and the SEC All-Defensive Team in 2023, averaging 6.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game across 70 appearances.
Despite having two years of eligibility left, Bediako declared for the 2023 NBA Draft. He went undrafted but signed a two-way contract with the San Antonio Spurs. Since leaving Alabama, Bediako has played for the Austin Spurs, Grand Rapids Gold, and most recently the Motor City Cruise.
While he signed three different professional contracts, Bediako has never appeared in a regular-season NBA game.
In his court filing, Bediako’s attorneys stated that he regretted his 2023 decision to leave Tuscaloosa after his sophomore year. They argued that if he had the "foresight" to see how much NIL compensation and eligibility rules would change, he never would have left.
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Bediako’s legal team cited the case of James Nnaji, who was cleared to play for Baylor in December 2025 despite being a high NBA draft pick with years of European professional experience. Bediako is arguing that the NCAA is being "biased" by clearing international pros while blocking domestic G League players like himself.
The University of Alabama officially supports his return, stating they are backing his efforts to be reinstated while he "works to complete his degree."
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https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nca...arles-bediako-return/7ad2398e9992206c9529ad72
Why ex-Alabama basketball player Charles Bediako was allowed to return from G League in latest NCAA controversy
Former Alabama basketball center Charles Bediako has been granted a temporary restraining order against the NCAA, making him immediately eligible to rejoin the Crimson Tide. Despite having spent the last three seasons in the NBA G League, a Tuscaloosa County judge ruled on Wednesday that the 7-footer can return to the college basketball court and play this Saturday against Tennessee.
This is not the first case of a player with pro experience coming back to college basketball, most notably James Nnaji, who joined Baylor in the middle of the season. Bediako’s legal team used the Nnaji precedent to argue a "double standard," claiming the NCAA unfairly favors international professionals over domestic G League players. While the NCAA maintains that Bediako’s three previous NBA-related contracts (including a two-way deal with the Spurs) make him ineligible, the court's intervention ensures that, at least for now, the Crimson Tide will have their rim protector back for the heat of SEC play.
Who is Charles Bediako?
Bediako is a 7-foot Canadian center who became a household name for Alabama basketball fans during his two-season stint from 2021 to 2023.
Known as a rim-protecting specialist, he was a core piece of the 2023 team that earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. He was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team in 2022 and the SEC All-Defensive Team in 2023, averaging 6.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game across 70 appearances.
Despite having two years of eligibility left, Bediako declared for the 2023 NBA Draft. He went undrafted but signed a two-way contract with the San Antonio Spurs. Since leaving Alabama, Bediako has played for the Austin Spurs, Grand Rapids Gold, and most recently the Motor City Cruise.
While he signed three different professional contracts, Bediako has never appeared in a regular-season NBA game.
Why is Charles Bediako returning to Alabama?
Bediako is attempting a return to Alabama because he wants to "right a wrong decision" and take advantage of a rapidly shifting legal landscape that has begun allowing professional players to return to college.In his court filing, Bediako’s attorneys stated that he regretted his 2023 decision to leave Tuscaloosa after his sophomore year. They argued that if he had the "foresight" to see how much NIL compensation and eligibility rules would change, he never would have left.
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Bediako’s legal team cited the case of James Nnaji, who was cleared to play for Baylor in December 2025 despite being a high NBA draft pick with years of European professional experience. Bediako is arguing that the NCAA is being "biased" by clearing international pros while blocking domestic G League players like himself.
The University of Alabama officially supports his return, stating they are backing his efforts to be reinstated while he "works to complete his degree."
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Professional Players Returning to College
- By ScriptOhio
- Buckeye Basketball
- 3 Replies
Tom Izzo Rips NCAA Over Former NBA Draft Pick Committing to Baylor
Tom Izzo spoke out against the NCAA after former NBA draft pick James Nnaji’s commitment to Baylorwww.si.com
Tom Izzo Rips NCAA Over Former NBA Draft Pick Committing to Baylor
James Nnaji the 31st pick in the 2023 NBA draft, recently committed to play for Scott Drew and Baylor.
In the ever-changing landscape of college sports, another seismic shift came recently with the news of former NBA draft pick James Nnaji’s commitment to Baylor. Nnaji, the 31st pick in the 2023 NBA draft, has played in Europe since he was drafted and the Knicks currently own his draft rights.
He has never appeared in an NBA game, but taking the college route sparks an immediate question about the harsh reality of college sports in the modern age. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo hasn’t been afraid to criticize the NCAA in its new age of NIL, most recently for the decision to grant eligibility to multiple former NBA G League players to play college basketball. The legendary Spartans coach always sticks up for the integrity of the game and especially its players. He was asked about Nnaji’s commitment and provided some candid thoughts for the NCAA to chew on.
“Now we’re taking guys that were drafted in the NBA and everything,” Izzo said via Spartans Illustrated. “I said it to you a month and a half ago, come on Magic [Johnson] and Gary [Harris], let’s go baby. Let’s do it, why not? If that’s what we’re going through, shame on the NCAA. Shame on the coaches too, but shame on the NCAA. Because coaches are going to do what they got to do I guess, but the NCAA is the one.
“Those people on those committees that are making those decisions to allow something so ridiculous and not think of the kid. Everybody talks about me thinking about my program as selfish, no. Get that straight for all of you, I’m thinking of what is best for my son if he was in that position. And I just don’t agree with it.”
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'This s*** is crazy' — Baylor's addition of James Nnaji further blurs line between pro and college hoops
The combination of schools looking for players outside the traditional recruiting realm and judges eroding the NCAA’s ability to enforce eligibility rules has led everyone here, whether they like it or not.sports.yahoo.com
'This s*** is crazy' — Baylor's addition of James Nnaji further blurs line between pro and college hoops
It’s rare for a college basketball story to enter the mainstream sports conversation on Christmas Eve, but Baylor’s announcement that it had added center James Nnaji — the 31st pick in the 2023 NBA Draft — was enough of a “What are we doing here?” moment for it to break through.
Though college sports is now professional in almost every sense — including players who have signed pro contracts in Europe and the NBA G League finding their way to college basketball this year — the Nnaji development feels like new territory. This isn’t someone who slipped through the cracks or got bad advice, turned pro out of high school and ran into a career dead end. Nnaji, who has been playing in Europe, was one draft slot away from being a first-round pick with a guaranteed NBA contract. He played in the NBA Summer League and has even been part of a trade.
“Santa Claus is delivering mid season acquisitions…this s*** is crazy!!” UConn coach Dan Hurley wrote on X shortly after the news became public.
Is this really the type of player who should be part of college basketball? Who knows, maybe Arizona can get LeBron James on the bench for its Final Four push if he wants to play with his son Bryce....
That would be absurd, of course — and, to be clear, expressly against NCAA rules since these pro-to-college cases must take place within five years of high school — but you can be forgiven if it seems like anything goes these days.
And guess what? As more college programs pursue mid-year additions, some have even checked in with G League players on two-way contracts who have appeared in actual NBA games. That seems inevitable at some point, too, given where this trend seems to be headed.
But don’t blame Baylor or any program for pursuing those players.
While you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone in college sports who thinks this is a good development, schools are merely doing what the NCAA has given them the green light to do as it waits and hopes for some kind of antitrust protection from Congress that would allow for the actual enforcement of the rulebook rather than a mishmash of eligibility rulings.
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Just sayin': Who knew that you could get drafted by the NBA, play professionally in Europe, and then still be eligible to play college basketball? He's listed (below) on Baylor's roster as a Freshman:
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DE Zion Grady (Official Thread)
- By ScriptOhio
- Buckeye Football
- 86 Replies
Zion Grady’s turn: Why Ohio State believes its next breakout defensive end is already here
After flashing as a true freshman, Grady enters 2026 positioned to seize a starting edge role, and Ohio State’s portal restraint suggests the Buckeyes believe their next defensive star is already in the building.
www.landgrantholyland.com
Zion Grady’s turn: Why Ohio State believes its next breakout defensive end is already here
After flashing as a true freshman, Grady enters 2026 positioned to seize a starting edge role, and Ohio State’s portal restraint suggests the Buckeyes believe their next defensive star is already in the building.Zion Grady arrived in Columbus without much fanfare, but by the end of his true freshman season, it was clear Ohio State’s defensive staff saw something bigger coming.
In a year defined by transition and long-term planning along the defensive front, Grady quietly positioned himself as a foundational piece for what comes next. His presence was one of the understated reasons the Buckeyes felt comfortable redshirting CJ Hicks and resisting the urge to overspend in the transfer portal at defensive end. Ohio State believed it already had an answer developing in-house.
As a true freshman, Grady appeared in rotational snaps and finished the season with 13 tackles, two tackles for loss, and one sack. The raw numbers were modest, but the context mattered. He was asked to play within structure, hold the edge, and learn the physical and mental demands of Big Ten trench play rather than chase production.
When he did flash, it came in the form of burst off the ball, length at the point of attack, and an ability to stay balanced while setting the edge against the run. For a first-year defensive end in Ohio State’s system, that combination is often the precursor to a significant second-year leap.
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Grady’s profile fits the Buckeyes’ long lineage of productive edge defenders. He has the frame to add functional strength without sacrificing explosiveness, and his first step is already good enough to threaten tackles who overset.
With a full offseason in the program and an expanded role, the expectation internally is not just improvement, but impact. If Grady takes the anticipated step forward, Ohio State gains more than a starter. It gains another homegrown defensive end capable of anchoring the edge, creating disruption, and continuing a tradition that has defined the program’s defensive identity.
The path is there. The competition is real. And the confidence from the staff is telling. Zion Grady doesn’t need to be a surprise this season, he just needs to become what Ohio State has been quietly preparing him to be all along.
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Miami (FL) Hurricanes (1926-2003)
- College Football
- 4488 Replies
The kids won a lot of lawsuits against the NCAA and schools because they were being screwed and the crowd of public opinion was behind them. Now these are 20 year old millionaires trying to get out of a 4 million dollar 1 year deal for a 6 million dollar 1 year deal. Particularly at QB when it’s detrimental to the school they are leaving (portal is closed so they can’t get another QB). Fuck em. Losing Mensah could be the diffference between 10-2 and a playoff bid vs 7-5. That’s media money (since the ACC pays based on ratings), playoff money, ticket and concession sales.That is the way the normal world works.
You break a contract, there are damages. Typically those get negotiated down but you pay legal fees to do so.
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