Alabama Basketball: Nate Oats has solved his ‘big’ problem

On Wednesday night, Alabama Basketball got better and bigger with the addition of 4-Star, PF, Jarin Stevenson. The dynamic Stevenson has been frequently and accurately compared to Noah Clowney.

On3 has Jarin Stevenson ranked as the No. 20 player in the 2024 class. However, it was anticipated Stevenson would reclassify and join Alabama Basketball’s 2023 class. It had been expected that he would not decide about moving to the 2023 class for a few weeks. Instead, it was a double announcement that Stevenson will join the Crimson Tide for the 2023-24 season.

https://twitter.com/JarinStevenson/status/1671668455165120513

Stevenson’s On3 profile has him as a 6’8″ power forward. Other sources list him as 6’9″ and a couple of sources claim he is closer to 6’10”. He is a natural ‘4’ with the potential to fill in at the ‘5’ slot during his Crimson Tide career.

Stevenson’s finalists included two other top college basketball programs; Virginia and North Carolina. His mother played at North Carolina and the family lives only a short drive away from the Chapel Hill campus.

UNC fans don’t appreciate Alabama Basketball

Based on Twitter comments many North Carolina fans were shocked a quality player would choose the Crimson Tide over the Tar Heels. The tweet below goes a long way toward explaining why.

Nate Oats is turning – make that, has turned Alabama Basketball into an NBA development factory.

With the addition of Stevenson and the expected addition of Grant Nelson, the Crimson Tide no longer has a serious void left by Charles Bediako’s decision to enter the NBA Draft. The 6′ 11″ Nelson can play at the ‘5’ spot along with Nick Pringle, while also having the skills to play at the ‘4’ and with some improved shooting accuracy, even in a ‘3’ rotation.

What makes the addition of Stevenson and Nelson so exciting is Nate Oats has a roster of ’23 of many guys who can play position-less basketball. Seeing them develop will be exciting for Crimson Tide fans.

Nate Oats has one open roster spot left for the 2023 class. Alabama basketball insiders think Oats will be patient and possibly add a mid-year guy to fill the 13th roster slot. There has been frequent speculation the top target for Oats is 6’11”, true center, Aiden Sherrell. The buzz is Sherrell is high on the Crimson Tide, but will need some academic progress in the fall, in order to reclassify to the 2023 class in December.

Some Crimson Tide fans are concerned Grant Nelson has not officially joined the Crimson Tide, but numerous insiders have stated there is no cause for concern.