Authorities say Alabama freshman Brandon Miller provided the murder weapon in a January 15 shooting in Tuscaloosa. What are the ramifications for Miller and the Alabama basketball program?
The allegation of Miller’s involvement came during a preliminary hearing in the death of Jamea Harris. Former Alabama player Darius Miles along with Michael Davis, have been charged with the capital murder of Jamea Harris on January 15 near the Alabama campus.
Miller brought the gun to the crime scene
In testimony it was revealed that Miller brought Miles former teammate the gun that was used in the shooting near campus. Miller has not been criminally charged and isn’t expected to be. He’s played in all 27 games this season for Alabama including several since the shooting occurred on January 15. The fact that he wasn’t reprimanded in the very least has raised the ire of basketball fans and the media as well.
A Twitterstorm of protest calling for Oats to step down
There was no shortage of people on social media who thought Oats was covering up Miller’s involvement and calling for Oats to do the right thing.
Brandon Miller should never play another minute for Alabama basketball. And Nate Oats’s job should be in jeopardy for this cover up. Bama’s star player aided and abetted a mom’s murder. This is insane: pic.twitter.com/YRVPIU6fBU
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) February 21, 2023
What a bombshell. A likely first team All-American on the No. 2 team in the country provided his teammate a gun that became a murder weapon.
And then his coach Nate Oats had the gall to call it "wrong place, wrong time!" https://t.co/NSQXnmFtKw
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) February 21, 2023
https://twitter.com/HFulwood/status/1628187154869374976
Oats did issue a second statement which only made his first one seem worse.
Nate Oats issued an apologetic statement Tuesday evening after his answer to a question about star player Brandon Miller during his midday Tuesday news conference. #RollTide #Alabama #AlabamaBaskstball pic.twitter.com/YlG1dwVZhN
— Alabama Crimson Tide | AL.com (@aldotcomTide) February 22, 2023
Mike DeCoury is a well respected writer for the Sporting News. He wrote that Oats had failed his leadership test:
“This is outrageous”.
“What happened here is not “college kid” stuff. This is not a bunch of guys getting drunk and into a bar fight that sends one or two of them to the hospital for stitches. This is one young person dead and two young people charged with murder”.
Miller’s NBA future is now cloudy
Miller leads Alabama and the SEC in scoring with an average of 18.7 points per game. He is viewed as a possible NBA lottery pick with some mock drafts having him drafted as high as #4, That was before Tuesday’s news and it’s immaterial to the family of Harris.
Her mother says Harris was shot after refusing the advances of Miles. Davis is suspected of firing the shots that killed the woman.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
