Former UT basketball player Zakai Zeigler’s future with team hinges on ruling

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Zakai Zeigler’s legal team and NCAA representatives appeared in the U.S. District Court on Friday, after the former Tennessee basketball star asked for a preliminary injunction in order to play for a fifth year and collect NIL compensation. 

Zeigler himself did not appear in court. No decision was made by Judge Katherine Crytzer, however, since the Vols are already practicing, she said she’ll bring a decision as soon as possible. 

The former basketball player’s lawsuit argues that an “arbitrary” NCAA rule limits student-athletes to participating in four seasons of competition. 

The lawsuit also said if Zeigler had been barred from playing for a single year through the NCAA redshirt system, he would still be eligible to play now. Friday, Little argued that through the system, the NCAA ultimately gets to decide if student-athletes have the chance to play during their fifth year of eligibility instead of the student-athletes themselves.

During the hearing, Crytzer asked whether the NCAA eligibility rule is commercial and how that impacts antitrust laws.

The lawsuit hinges on whether or not the NCAA rules violate the Sherman Act, constituting an “unreasonable restraint of trade” because when student-athletes’ eligibility ends, they are effectively locked out of the NIL market.

Zeigler‘s attorney, Alex Little, argued that by blocking him from playing another year and profiting from NIL opportunities, the rule has a direct economic impact. 

Little also said that Zeigler has a guaranteed spot on the basketball team, and he intends to play. The attorney also noted the NCAA couldn’t stop the former point guard’s entrance into the transfer portal, meaning that if Crytzer approves the injunction, he could play at a school other than UT. 

The NCAA argued that eligibility rules are non-commercial in nature and fall outside the scope of the Sherman Act.

Lawyers representing the NCAA questioned how incoming freshmen athletes might be affected if fifth-year players keep their spots on the roster.

As an example, the organization mentioned Ja’Kobi Gillespie, the Maryland transfer who committed to Tennessee in April as a point guard. The NCAA said he could lose his spot if Zeigler gets another year.

The organization also argued that the rules didn’t change the entire time Zeigler was playing for Tennessee, and he knew about the eligibility. The judge asked why Zeigler filed the lawsuit in May, and his legal team said that waiting until the end of the basketball season to file would give them a better understanding of how much money he’d be missing out on if he didn’t play a fifth year. 

A point of contention during the hearing happened when Little referenced Tennessee’s SB 0536. The law passed in April outlines how a student-athlete can receive compensation tied to their NIL, enrollment status, roster spot and other forms of payment available to similarly positioned athletes. However, the bill was not mentioned in the original paperwork provided to the judge. 

Crytzer ordered Zeigler’s legal team to provide a supplemental briefing of the Senate bill by June 7. The NCAA has to respond by June 8. 

10News asked Zeigler’s legal team for a comment, but lawyers said they won’t make a statement until additional documents and records are filed with the judge for review.