Alabama Basketball: Another offseason of roster reconstruction

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /
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Alabama Basketball: New Additions to 2023-24 roster

Alabama Basketball replaced its eight losses with eight additions, and the trade-off is fairly intriguing.

From the 2023 high school recruiting class, Bama brings in 4-star wing Sam Walters, 4-star forward Mouhamed Dioubate, and 3-star wing Kris Parker. The Crimson Tide also got a late addition in 4-star forward Jarin Stevenson, who reclassed from the 2024 cycle.

Even after moving up a class, Stevenson is considered Bama’s highest ranked recruit at no. 47 overall. Although they are young, the addition of three top-100 players in the frontcourt gives the Tide some much-needed depth.

Bama also welcomes in transfer portal guards Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (Cal State Fullerton) and Aaron Estrada (Hofstra). Like Sears, both are complete guards with lots of experience. Estrada’s ceiling is becoming one of the best scorers in the conference, while Wrightsell Jr. is a quality combo guard that should also be on the floor a lot.

After the surprising loss of Charles Bediako, Coach Nate Oats and Alabama dipped back into the portal seeking starter-quality players in the frontcourt.

The Tide eventually landed North Dakota State’s Grant Nelson, one of the most sought-after players in the portal, and West Virginia’s Mohamed Wague. At 6’11” and 6’10” respectively, these transfer additions have the size to compete in the SEC.

Nelson has a tantalizing perimeter-oriented game and impressive athleticism, and projects to be a starter next to Nick Pringle in the frontcourt. Like Pringle, Wague is a high-energy big that excels in catch-and-convert situations.

Where is Bama in the preseason Coaches' Poll?. dark. Next

Alabama Basketball will look like a whole new team in many different respects next season. Fortunately, Coach Oats has a lot of experience in roster reconstruction, and has a proven track record of quickly building winning teams. If anybody can get this talented group to mesh, I believe he is the guy to do it.