Alabama basketball receives three years of probation, fine

The Alabama basketball program is facing a three-year probation and a $5,000 fine (plus 1% of the men’s basketball program budget) for the actions of a former associate athletics director.

The NCAA announced today that former associate athletic director Kobie Baker, who resigned in September 2017, violated NCAA ethical conduct rules when he received money in exchange for facilitating a meeting between the father of a student-athlete – presumed to be former Alabama star Collin Sexton – a financial advisor and the financial advisor’s representatives.

Alabama was charged with a Level I-Mitigated rules violation, while Baker was charged with a Level I-Aggravated violation. The former associate athletics director also received a 10-year show-cause order, meaning any NCAA member school employing him must restrict him from any athletically related duties unless it shows cause why the restrictions should not apply.

According to the release, Baker received at least $3,000 from the financial advisor and his representative for setting up a dinner with Sexton’s father, with the former associate athletics director admitting he knew from the first meeting that the financial advisor and his representative wanted access to student-athletes and their parents.

“The nature of the conduct — selling access to student-athletes and their families — completely undermines the Association’s foundational values,” the committee said in its decision.

“The panel recognizes that the violations in this case were unique in that they resulted from an administrator’s conduct rather than an individual within the sport program. Although that relationship is different, it does not absolve Alabama from responsibility, nor does it suggest that only minimum penalties are appropriate,” the panel continued.

(NCAA)