"Ridiculous hit piece" - Kai Spears receives support as Alabama denies involvement in Darius Miles shooting case

Alabama guard Kai Spears was named the fourth Crimson Tide player allegedly present in the January 15 shooting that killed Jamea Harris near campus. The New York Times reported that Spears was with teammates Darius Miles, Brandon Miller and Jaden Bradley at the time of the incident.

However, the University of Alabama refuted the report and was adamant that only Miller and Bradley were present at the scene. Both players have been cooperating with the investigation, while Miles was dismissed from the team and indicted on a murder charge earlier this month.

“Your story is inaccurate,” Alabama said in a statement. “Based on the information we have, there were no current student-athletes present at the scene other than Brandon Miller and Jaden Bradley, who are both fully cooperating witnesses. From the outset, UA Athletics has fully cooperated with law enforcement and supported their investigation.”

Alabama athletics has since issued the following statement to the New York Times: “Your story is inaccurate. Based on the information we have, there were no current student-athletes present at the scene other than Brandon Miller and Jaden Bradley, who are both fully cooperating… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Fans on Twitter quickly reacted to the story, considering Alabama will start their NCAA tournament campaign on Friday against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Some were calling out the New York Times for their report, while others want Alabama to tell the truth.

Here are some of the comments on Twitter:

Kai Spears and the university may seriously have to take action against the New York Times.What a ridiculous hit piece.

@SSN_Alabama I know UA has denied- but who cares if he was there? It was on the strip and he’s a member of the basketball. Tons of people were around

@SSN_Alabama The story says he was in the car. Police reviewed THE DASHBOARD CAMERA IN THE CAR, but somehow didn’t see him….but he was there…..yeah…..right. https://t.co/NutzmF0X56

@SSN_Alabama He’d have to get in line. They’re in so many lawsuits because of this same thing that their lawyers will have to take payment in stock shares. Several just from @JamesOKeefeIII

@comnsenseishard If Kai Spears been asked to bring the gun, and then had brought the gun, I don’t think he’d still be on the team.

@hmardukis504 @wetz21 @aldotcom Everyone knew there was a passenger. That doesn’t make it Kai Spears. You’re getting all this from the media that has repeatedly posted inaccurate information? The University IMMEDIATELY called the NYT liars. GTFO big guy.

@marctorrence If we have players lying to the coaching staff and admin about where they were that night…that’s a big deal. Otherwise, I don’t really see the relevance of Kai Spears being a passenger, based on everything else we know.

While Darius Miles was immediately removed from the team, Brandon Miller and Jaden Bradley’s alleged presence at the scene emerged a few weeks later. Miller was accused of driving the gun to the scene after Miles requested him to do so.

However, Miller’s attorney denied that his client saw or touched the gun. The star freshman is not facing any charges, while Bradley was in a different car tailing Miller.

Kai Spears refused to comment on the report by the New York Times. Spears was a walk-on and the son of Christian Spears, who is the athletic director at Marshall University.

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Kai Spears, Brandon Miller decline to comment on recent report

Kai Spears and Brandon Miller decline to comment on The New York Times report.

Kai Spears and Brandon Miller were present at the team’s practice on Wednesday, ahead of their matchup against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. While Miller declined to comment on the recent New York Times report, Spears made a brief statement on the matter.

“I’m sorry, I’m not going to be able to speak about that,” Spears said.

The alleged involvement of three current Alabama players in this controversy shrouds their campaign ahead of the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Crimson Tide has the second-best odds of winning the national title behind the Houston Cougars.

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