Judge denies Zakai Zeigler’s request for preliminary injunction allowing 5th season

A federal judge on Thursday denied Tennessee point guard Zakai Zeigler’s request for a preliminary injunction allowing him to play a fifth season of Division I basketball in five years.

U.S. District Judge Katherine A. Crytzer listened to arguments in a hearing June 6 in Knoxville and entered her denial Thursday morning. She wrote that Zeigler failed to demonstrate he would likely succeed in his argument that the NCAA keeping him from playing a fifth season of Division I basketball is a violation under the Sherman Act.

“This Court is a court of law, not policy,” Crytzer wrote in her order denying the injunction. “What the NCAA should do as a policy matter to benefit student athletes is beyond the reach of the Sherman Act and TTPA and by extension, this Court.”

The two-time Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year asked for an injunction when he sued the NCAA on May 20 over its rules limiting him to four seasons in a five-year window as an unlawful restraint of trade under both federal and Tennessee laws.

His lawsuit argues he could earn between $2 million and as much as $4 million with another season. His attorneys made clear this is just a first step in this legal fight.

“We are disappointed the Court declined to grant a preliminary injunction on the basis that the NCAA does not directly control NIL compensation, just days after the House settlement confirmed they would do exactly that,” according to a statement from Litson PLLC and the Garza Law Firm.

“This ruling is just the first chapter of what we believe will ultimately be a successful challenge. We intend to press forward and are evaluating the best path ahead for Zakai.”

The judge wrote that the harms Zeigler argues he would suffer can be addressed with a future damages award.

She also noted the “fixed number of roster spots” for each Division I basketball team and that “an injunction would run the risk of harming currently enrolled players committed to a university and current high school seniors being recruited.”

The NCAA argued in its brief before the hearing that Zeigler’s injunction request should be denied because he is asking the court to make him the first athlete in history to play a fifth season in Division I “as a matter of right.”

During the hearing, the judge asked Zeigler’s attorneys to file a quick brief answering whether or not Zeigler is an “intercollegiate athlete” as defined under state law and what legal standard applies to Zeigler’s claim under the Tennessee Trade Practices Act.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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