Don’t fall over inside Coleman Coliseum if you see Charles Bediako run out of the tunnel with Alabama on Saturday.
It’s possible. Seriously.
The former Alabama center is trying to play for the Crimson Tide again after spending multiple years in the NBA’s G League, per court documents AL.com obtained Tuesday. He sued the NCAA in Tuscaloosa Circuit Court on Tuesday, seeking “immediate preliminary and permanent injunctive relief.” If a judge grants him any kind of relief, Bediako would be eligible to play immediately.
And this part of the filing is noteworthy and why it’s possible he is with the team Saturday when the No. 17 Crimson Tide faces Tennessee at 7:30 p.m.
“Official regular season games for the University of Alabama’s 2025-2026 men’s basketball season have already begun and the team has already started conference play within the Southeastern Conference,” the filing reads. “Mr. Bediako will be irreparably harmed if he is not able to join the team immediately because of the lost development and opportunity to become integrated with his teammates and potentially participate in a postseason run.”
The court would have to grant Bediako the injunctive relief for him to be available this week, and it is not yet known if he would play or how much he would play if he did. But the implications for the Crimson Tide would be nothing short of seismic.
6-feet-11, 225 pounds colossal, to be exact.
Alabama’s front court figures to be the biggest obstacle to the Crimson Tide making a run deep in the postseason again this season. Aiden Sherrell has played at a high level at times, but there hasn’t been much consistent production otherwise from Crimson Tide bigs.
Keitenn Bristow has been injured. Noah Williamson has largely underwhelmed after transferring from Bucknell. Freshman Collins Onyejiaka has missed most of the season because of a medical condition.
So, Alabama could certainly use Bediako.
Bediako would be more than a body, though. He’s experienced, talented and knows the system well. Plus, he was one of the main reasons Alabama earned the No. 1 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament and won both SEC titles that season.
Nate Oats explained this past Friday.
“Bediako was an elite rim protector for us for two years,” Oats said while answering a question about Sherrell. “He kind of anchored the third-best defense in the country … protecting the rim, guarding other teams’ post-up bigs.”
Sherrell has given Alabama “a real similar role,” Oats added. Sherrell, who averaged 21.5 points the last two games, is also 16th in the nation with a block percentage of 10.9%, per KenPom. But if the Crimson Tide had Sherrell and Bediako on the same team?
That’s the stuff of a potentially elite front court.
Mix in some good-to-great guard play from Labaron Philon, Aden Holloway and company, and Alabama’s back in business. Bediako could be the missing piece for the Crimson Tide to have a legitimate shot at chasing a national title.
Now, it’s up to a legal court to decide his future on the basketball court.