Wisconsin announced earlier this week that Elijah Gray had been dismissed from the basketball team due to "events preceding his enrollment." That was all that was said, and Wisconsin wouldn't say more due to privacy laws. This didn't stop rumors from flying, with the primary one being that he was involved in the ongoing NCAA gambling probe. ESPN has basically now officially said the same thing.
A new article by David Purdum on the NCAA betting investigation ties Gray's dismissal to the probe. The reporting says, "Multiple sources with direct knowledge told ESPN these actions were related to the NCAA's gambling investigation." The article goes on to list Gray as the player who was dismissed, while two others are being held out from playing.
Elijah Gray's name mentioned in ESPN report for sports gambling
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ESPN makes it clear that they are linking Gray more with the NBA betting scandal and not the point shaving probe that the NCAA is also investigating. Still, for Gray, sports betting is not allowed for NCAA players, even if it is not college betting.
The NCAA has made headway on changing that rule, but it has yet to fully implement it, and for Gray, this happened long before even the rumor of the rule changing.
The dismissal of Gray has drastically hurt the frontcourt depth of the Wisconsin Badgers. Now, after the starters, Austin Rapp and Nolan Winter, the Badgers will be forced to rely on true freshmen Aleksaus Bieliauskas and Will Garlock.
This also leaves Wisconsin with only 14 total players (including walk-ons), which Greg Gard has said is altering the way he practices and forcing more players into action than would have happened with Gray still on the team.