When the No. Kentucky Wildcats, 3 plant, face No. 14 plant Oakland Golden Grizzlies at 7: 10 p. m. ET Thursday in the beginning square of March Madness ‘ South Regional, a shield with previous ties to a professional league does play a starring role for John Calipari’s squad.
Freshman Rob Dillingham, who formerly played for sports college and is a projected lottery get in the 2024 NBA Draft, has emerged as one of the Wildcats ‘ best people. Recently named the SEC’s Sixth Man of the Year, Dillingham averaged 15.4 points, 3.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds a game while shooting 48.2 % from the field and 44.9 % from behind the arc.
Dillingham is also frequently mentioned in federal court records for a case where he is n’t a party but is still a significant figure.

Matt and Ryan Bewley, Dillingham’s past OTE teammates, are bringing a lawsuit against the NCAA in an Illinois federal district court on competitive and NIL basis. The boys were declared disqualified by the NCAA to enroll at Chicago State University in the 2023- 24 time.
The boys broke the NCAA’s laws regarding professional position, professional competition, contracts, and compensation, as the NCAA sees it. Each was apparently paid about$ 100, 000 to sing in OTE, a group for high school athletes that offers training, education, one- on- one tuition and other sport and educational benefits.
The Bewley twins acknowledge receiving compensation, but they contend that it’s hypocritical for the NCAA to permit Dillingham, who the brothers claim received” comparable” compensation from OTE, to play instead of them. The brothers discuss Stanford freshman guard Kanaan Carlyle, who like the Bewleys and Dillingham, played in OTE before entering college.
To date, the brothers ‘ argument has missed the rim. In Bewley v. NCAA, the association has so far prevailed despite the NCAA’s court losing streak of about ten years.
The brothers ‘ requests for a preliminary injunction that would have allowed them to play were denied by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman in January. While the brothers portray their OTE as representing the league’s payment for their NIL, Gettleman and the NCAA see it differently: as a wage to play basketball. Under NCAA regulations, players who play in exchange for compensation that exceeds actual and necessary expenses to attend college are not eligible. The judge finds that strategy to be in line with antitrust and NIL laws.
The NCAA insists that all four players are subject to the same eligibility requirements when they are being applied. The organization explains how OTE changed its business model in 2022 to include athletes who chose a “scholarship option” rather than a” salary.” OTE responded to the NCAA’s evolving attempts to authorize NIL while maintaining its distinction from pay-for-play with this change. The NCAA accepted and approved an interim NIL policy on June 30, 2021, in line with state NIL statutes that were scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2021. The rule made it possible for college athletes to use a right they already had, the right to publicity, without breaking any NCAA regulations.

The NCAA determined that Dillingham and Carlyle’s contracts to play in 2022 were in accordance with NCAA regulations. The Bewley brothers, in contrast, joined OTE in 2021 and signed contracts that looked like employment deals.
Each brothers ‘ contract states that” the Player shall perform work, duties, and services at the direction of the Company and in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Agreement.” Gettleman found persuasive in the court’s defense that the brothers ‘ OTE contracts were” so clearly an employment contract with a professional league” and “much more than just an NIL contract.”
The brothers ‘ litigation continues. The court might view the change in OTE contracts as more of a formative than a substantive one if the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit were to eventually rule on the case. From that vantage point, the Bewley brothers, like Dillingham and Carlyle, arguably should be able to play college hoops.
In the meantime, Dillingham will finish the season with Kentucky and, should he declare for the 2024 draft, play in the NBA this fall. Carlyle, who averaged 11.5 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists for Stanford in 2023- 24, is currently in the transfer portal. The school fired head coach Jerod Haase after the men’s basketball team finished the season with a 14- to 18-game winning record. Stanford women’s basketball, however, finished first in the Pac- 12 and will play as a No. No. 2 seed on Friday against No. 15 Norfolk State.
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