The Alabama men’s basketball team is – or was – having a dream season.
The Crimson Tide have been one of the top-ranked teams for weeks, currently sitting at No. 2 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. They’re 24-4, including five wins over ranked teams. They boast a likely NBA lottery pick in Brandon Miller. They’re in line to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and possibly the top overall seed.
But over the last week, as more details have emerged about a fatal shooting that took place on Jan. 15 – a murder in which police say Miller was involved, though to what degree is unclear – the Tide have become embroiled in an ugly, tragic controversy.
And coach Nate Oats made it worse with some astonishingly insensitive comments that have infuriated members of the community, as well as the parents of Jamea Jonae Harris, the young woman who was killed. Former Alabama player Darius Miles and Michael “Buzz” Davis have been charged in her death.
Here’s what we know about the situation.
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Who is Brandon Miller?
Miller, a freshman for the Tide, is a 6-foot-9 forward projected to be an NBA lottery pick in the 2023 draft. The former McDonald’s All-American was a consensus five-star recruit and ranked the No. 9 player in the 2022 class according to ESPN.
He’s averaging 19.6 points, eight rebounds and 1.9 assists for Alabama this season while shooting 43.1% from 3. With Miller, Alabama instantly becomes a title contender. Additionally, he is a contender for national player of the year.
What happened on Jan. 15?
According to police testimony, on Jan. 15, Miles, then Miller’s teammate, texted Miller asking him to bring Miles’ gun to him.
Then, according to police, after Miller arrived, Miles handed Davis the gun while the two were in the back seat of Miller’s car. An argument with Harris turned violent shortly after, and Davis is accused of shooting Harris. He has since been charged with capital murder (Miles has been charged with the same.)
The day before when the Tide took on LSU, Alabama released a pregame statement that Miles would miss the rest of the season with an injury. Shortly after he was arrested on Jan. 15, Miles’ player bio was removed from Alabama’s website. Later that day, the school issued a statement that Miles had been “removed from campus” and was no longer on the team.
At that time, Miller’s alleged involvement that night had not been made public. He played in the Tide’s next game, on Jan. 17, at Vanderbilt. He scored 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in Alabama’s 78-66 win.
Why hasn’t Brandon Miller been charged?
Miller, meanwhile, has not been charged with anything. On Tuesday, Tuscaloosa chief assistant district attorney Paula Whitley told AL.com, “there’s nothing we could charge him with.”
Additionally, Alabama chose not to discipline Miller or Jaden Bradley, another Tide basketball player who investigators say was also at the scene of the shooting.
Shortly after police testimony was made public Tuesday, Oats was asked about the situation.
“We knew about that,” Oats said in reference to Miller’s involvement. “Can’t control everything everybody does outside of practice. Nobody knew that was going to happen. College kids are out. Brandon hasn’t been in any type of trouble, nor is he in any type of trouble in this case. Just in the wrong spot at the wrong time.”
Oats tried to backtrack later, releasing a statement that characterized his comments as “unfortunate” and read, in part, “In no way did I intend to downplay the seriousness of the situation of the tragedy that night.”
Meanwhile, Miller’s attorney insisted that his client had “never touched the gun, was not involved in its exchange” and “never knew that illegal activity involving the gun would occur.”
Why did Brandon Miller play Wednesday night?
Oats’ initial remarks infuriated the victim’s family, but the situation was made considerably worse on Wednesday, when Alabama played its first game since the police testimony had been reported.
Miller played, scoring a career-high 41 points on 14 of 25 shooting as the Tide held off upset-minded South Carolina 78-76 in overtime. He also had eight rebounds and three steals.
Oats praised Miller after the win, calling him “one of the most mental(ly) tough kids I’ve ever coached.” Asked about Miller’s focus, Oats told reporters, “Basketball kind of becomes a safe haven a little bit for some of these guys. They get on the floor and they kind of lock in on what they’ve done their whole lives and get some of the outside stuff out of their mind.’
Asked about why Miller was allowed to play, Oats deferred to Tide athletic director Greg Byrne. Byrne had gone on the ‘ESPN College Gameday’ podcast and said conversations involving him, Oats, Alabama school President Stuart Bell and the university’s legal counsel led the administration to the decision to play Miller.
“Information was shared collectively, and collectively we decided that Brandon was able to play,” Byrne told ESPN, declining to talk specifics.
Early Thursday, DeCarla Cotton, the mother of Harris, told USA TODAY Sports it was “unimaginable” that Miller played and continued to not be disciplined by the Tide.
What’s next for Brandon Miller and Alabama?
Alabama hosts Arkansas on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
Miller has not been made available to the media since the police testimony was reported Tuesday.