In an interview with Ryan Fowler on Tide 100.9 radio on Friday afternoon, Nate Oats revealed Alabama basketball's plan to get Latrell Wrightsell a medical redshirt and for him to return to Tuscaloosa for a sixth season of eligibility in 2025-26.
Wrightsell tore his Achillies in Alabama's loss to Oregon in the Championship Game of the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas in December, ending his season.
Wrightsell played in the team's first eight games of the season before suffering the injury and was averaging 11.5 PPG and leading the team in three point shooting at 42.2%.
“The rule in basketball is 30 percent, and you can’t play in the last half of the season. So he’s under the 30 percent total, and all the games that he did play were in the front half of the season,” Oats told Ryan Fowler on Tide 100.9 Friday afternoon. “We’re gonna file for it with the SEC, and I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t get it. I mean, he meets all the criteria. He’s gonna have to play a sixth year, and with COVID and all that they’ve been granting all that stuff.
Wrightsell was an integral part of Alabama's Final Four team and was one of the best shooters in college basketball a year ago. He hit 44.7% of his three pointers and 100% of his free throws for the Crimson Tide last season.
Before transferring to Alabama, Wrightsell played three seasons at Cal State Fullerton, but was granted an additional year of eligibility for this season because of COVID in 2020.
Alabama is likely to have significant roster turnover following this season. Mark Sears, Chris Youngblood, Grant Nelson, and Clifford Omoruyi will have all exhausted their eligibility. Freshmen Labaron Philon and Derrion Reid could both be one-and-dones. Philon is expected to garner lottery pick consideration while Reid is currently projected as a second round pick.
Someone, undoubtedly, will enter the Transfer Portal. It always happens.
Wrightsell would bring a lot of experience and leadership to next season's team as well as being one of the most accomplished shooters in the country. Alabama is also likely to pursue a medical redshirt for Houston Mallette, who played limited minutes in six games following Wrightsell's injury but has effectively been shut down for the season with lingering knee issues.
Both of those guys coming back would be a nice start to Alabama's roster building for 2025-26.