Dennis Gates reveals his stance on Charles Bediako controversy ahead of facing Alabama

Missouri coach Dennis Gates offered a surprising take on the Charles Bediako eligibility situation with his team set to face Alabama on Tuesday. Bediako, who played the past three seasons in the NBA G-League after going undrafted in 2023, recently sued the NCAA for the right to return to college basketball.

Bediako was granted a temporary restraining order, making him immediately eligible to play. He rejoined the Crimson Tide and played 25 minutes on Saturday against Tennessee, scoring 13 points along with three rebounds, two steals and two blocks off the bench.

On Monday, Bediako’s temporary restraining order was extended for another 10 days. That means he will continue to be available when Alabama takes on Missouri.

Asked in a press conference Monday to react to the situation, Gates came out and said that he supports Bediako’s right to return to play. This is a change of tune after other coaches such as Tennessee‘s Rick Barnes and Michigan State‘s Tom Izzo were critical of the decision.

“I support all student athletes and I said before in the press conference I support Bediako,” Gates said. “When you look at any athlete who pursues the opportunities that allowed them simplicity to improve their skills or position in life in general, sometimes the normal student tries to enter the workplace and then that student wants to reset or even come back to college and that’s OK too.

“…Until we have a collective bargaining, until we have the things that allow student athletes to successfully monetize, it’s gonna be what it is. There’s gonna be confusion and sometimes that confusion is gonna be bigger than what it seems. I want to be very clear, though. I support freedom of movement for all athletes within college athletics through mechanisms like the transfer portal and otherwise between college and professional. G-League, FIBA, NBA and beyond.”

Bediako is not the first player with professional experience to take advantage of a loophole that allowed him to return to college basketball. Baylor center James Nnaji drew headlines in December when he joined the Bears despite having been drafted 31st overall in the 2023 NBA Draft and playing the past couple of seasons overseas.

Nnaji’s case seemed to open the floodgates for others, as another former G-League player, London Johnson, joined Louisville but announced he planned to take a redshirt year. He will have two years of eligibility beginning in the 2026-27 season.

Now Charles Bediako has followed suit, leading to a widespread discussion about the direction that college basketball is headed. Although many coaches have been critical, Gates believes that this is simply a product of the changing nature of college sports over the past couple of years. Even he seemed to admit that some rules need to be looked over again, though.

“We’ve just got to understand we’re in a changing time in college athletics and in a changing time, we’ve got to be patient and understanding, but we also have to understand that the framework of college athletics is largely in tact,” he said. “We’re talking about 25,000-35,000 student athletes. Football and basketball, but primarily it’s men’s basketball and women’s basketball. So now you divide that even more. It’s not broken, it’s just in the Power 4 level where the money is and the talent is. That’s where the change possibly needs to be zeroed in on.”