Sometimes, the best moves you can make in the offseason are retaining the talent that you have, and not necessarily the talent you can bring in. While Nate Oats certainly found some talented players to add to his roster at Alabama, the biggest move of the offseason was getting Labaron Philon to return for his sophomore season.
With Mark Sears exhausting his eligibility, and Philon initially declaring for the draft and shutting the door on a potential return to Tuscaloosa, the Crimson Tide had a significant hole on the roster at lead guard. But Philon's stunning 180 in the 11th hour of the process changed that. His return makes Alabama a contender once again in the SEC and nationally.
Philon sat down with Sleepers Media this week to discuss his return to Alabama, what part of his game he's working on, the new teammates who have impressed him, and which players he's looking forward to going up against next season.
"Shooting, really," Philon said when asked what area of his game he's working to improve the most. "Really being able to be a high-level three-point shooter."
Philon will hope to improve his 31.5% three-point shooting as a freshman last season. It's the one area of his game holding him back from being one of the best guards in the country and a potential lottery pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
There's hope that his shot will improve drastically next season. Over the final 14 games of the season, Philon connected on 38.8% of his three-pointers on 49 total attempts. The sample size isn't large, but it's not insignificant, either.
Philon is excited by Alabama's additions in the Transfer Portal and the recruiting class, and how much more spacing there will be for him to operate.
"A lot more space being on the floor with all the guys around me that can really shoot the ball well so it's going to allow me for me to create open looks for them and get downhill," Philon said.
Philon shouted out two freshmen, Amari Allen and London Jemison, during the interview as well. Allen is starting to create a similar buzz to what surrounded Philon this time last year.
Philon said Allen was impressive and is a tall, physical guard. He mentioned Jemison's ability as a shooter, stating he shoots it more like a point guard or two guard rather than a wing.
Labaron Philon returned to Alabama because he wanted to play for Nate Oats again
Philon talked about his last-minute decision to return to Alabama, also stating that he said some things he probably shouldn't have in regards to the door being closed when he knew it really wasn't. He got caught up in the moment, which is understandable for a young kid going through the process to fulfill his lifelong dream of playing in the NBA.
Philon is excited to be back under the guidance of Oats.
"Playing for him, if you really got it in you, it's really going to show because he's going to bring it out of you," Philon said regarding his head coach.
"Being coached by him is special and is one of the main reasons I came back."
Oats has handed the keys to his offense over to Philon. With Sears gone, Philon is the guy to lead the charge for the Crimson Tide. Aden Holloway will handle the ball some, as will Latrell Wrightsell and Jalil Bethea, but Philon will be the primary initiator offensively. So he goes, so does the 2025-26 Crimson Tide.
Philon is hoping to lead Alabama back to the Final Four. He's also hoping to make his teammates who transferred regret it.
Philon mentioned his teammates, specifically the ones who transferred to other SEC schools (Mo Dioubate, Derrion Reid), as the guys he is most looking forward to playing against next season.
"It's all love, but it's no friends when we step on the court."