Alabama basketball is in the midst of preparing for a Sweet 16 game with BYU on Thursday, but the Transfer Portal never sleeps. Nate Oats has enlisted his top assistant, Preston Murphy, to handle the Transfer Portal comings and goings for now while Oats and the rest of the staff focuses on this run in the NCAA Tournament. It's a difficult balancing act for the 16 coaches still allive in the Big Dance with the portal opening this week.
Alabama is in good hands with Murphy, widely regarded as one of the best recruiters in the country. He's been hard at work, working the phones and contacting some of the elite talent that has already entered the portal.
One of those elite talents is former 5-star guard Jalil Bethea, who chose to enter the portal after a single season at Miami. According to Adam Zagoria, the Crimson Tide will receive a visit from Bethea at some point in the near future:
Jalil Bethea is expected to take a visit to Alabama at some point, per sources https://t.co/VtjhDjdA4J
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) March 26, 2025
Bethea is a former McDonald's All American who was the No. 7 overall player in last year's recruiting class, per the 247 composite rankings.
While Bethea had an up-and-down freshman season with the Hurricanes, he was billed as an elite shooter coming out of high school, knocking down 41% of his three-point attempts on the EYBL circuit as a senior.
Bethea shot 32.6% from three as a freshman at Miami on 92 attempts, but that number shouldn't be concerning for Crimson Tide fans. Oats and company have always done a good job at identifying what makes for good shooters.
In last year's Transfer Portal haul, Alabama landed Aden Holloway from Auburn, a player who had the pedigree as an elite shooter in high school but struggled from three during his freshman year on the Plains.
As a sophomore with the Crimson Tide, Holloway improved his three-point shooting to 41.7%. He was at 30.2% as a freshman at Auburn.
With Mark Sears and Chris Youngblood graduating and Labaron Philon potentially entering the NBA Draft, Alabama has a glaring need in the backcourt for next season. They are likely to look for two in the Transfer Portal. Bethea is a priority target for the staff, and Alabama is expected to be heavily involved with Kennesaw State transfer - and Tuscaloosa Native - Adrian Wooley.