Alabama Basketball: Avery Johnson lands a top prospect in Juwan Gary

Alabama basketball gained its second commitment for the 2019 class with 4-Star, SF, Juwan Gary choosing to play for Avery Johnson.

Most of the attention on the Alabama basketball, 2019 recruiting class has been on Trendon Watford and Kira Lewis. The two Alabama high school players are top targets for Avery Johnson. On Friday, Avery pulled in another, though lesser known, top target for the 2019 class.

Juwan Gary, 4-Star small forward from South Carolina, announced his decision to play for Avery Johnson. Gary has been ranked inside the Top 100 for the 2019 class since he was a freshman. The 247Sports Composite has Gary listed as the No. 67 player nationally, but the same source recently reported he was moved up to No. 52.

Gary is 6-foot-6 and 200 pounds. The 17-year-old may have a growth spurt left in his already explosive frame. Whether he plays wing or grows into a player who can also play the four spot, Gary already has the physical talents to take the ball to the rim. Alabama basketball fans can think of Juwan as a mix of skills comparable to John Petty and Herbert Jones.

As yet, he is not the outside shooter Petty is and his defensive game does not match Jones. He has the same tools of the Alabama basketball pair with the potential to have broader skills.

Though a top player, Gary only had nine offers. Those offers included Virginia Tech, Duke, Kansas, Virginia and North Carolina. After Alabama, the teams with the best chance to get Gary were South Carolina and Clemson.

Avery, Collin and Tevin Mack influenced Gary’s decision

Gary said there were two main factors in choosing Alabama basketball. Avery Johnson’s NBA experience and the recent move of Collin Sexton to the NBA made a strong impact on Juwan. The other factor was current Crimson Tide player, Tevin Mack being from the same area of South Carolina.

Gary is the second verbal commitment in the Alabama basketball, 2019 class. Juwan joins Diante Smith as Crimson Tide verbal commits.

Gary was the South Carolina class 2A player of the year last season. He averaged 20.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Tide basketball insiders have said Gary’s perimeter shooting was off last season. If so, it could explain how Avery was able to pull him away from the ACC schools. South Carolina media outlet, The State reported Gary’s field-goal shooting last season was 52 percent.

Gary’s outside shooting looks good in the video highlights below.

Next: Impact of Collin Sexton will reset Tide player's NBA future

On the basis of the two verbal commits from Smith and Gary, Alabama basketball is ranked No. 7 per the Team Rankings from 247Sports.