At the NBA Draft withdrawal deadline, Nate Oats and Alabama basketball got the best possible news with Labaron Philon's shocking decision to return to the Crimson Tide. Just two weeks before, Philon had announced he would be staying in the draft and not returning to Alabama. His decision was a stunning 180, and a big boost for the Tide for the 2025-26 season.
With Philon declaring and Mark Sears out of eligibility, Oats had a big hole in his backcourt. Rising junior Aden Holloway was going to be tasked with a much different role next season, and who the secondary and tertiary ball handlers were going to be was a mystery.
Now, with Philon's return, Alabama has its lead guard and alpha for next season. It's Philon's team, and Oats has assembled a perfect group around him.
Alabama has shooting and floor spacing everywhere. The addition of Patriot League Player of the Year Noah Williamson, coupled with the return of Aiden Sherrell, gives Alabama two "stretch-five" bigs who can shoot and clear out the lane. Philon will have plenty of room to operate and get to the rim. He'll have plenty of shooters to kick the ball out to when the rim isn't open, too.
It's hard to overstate how big Philon's decision to return is for Oats and Alabama. Any questions pundits had about Alabama next season are now gone.
Alabama a big riser in way-too-early Top 25 rankings after Philon's decision
The most recent updated Top 25 following the withdrawal deadline was by Jeff Borzello on ESPN. In his rankings update, Borzello jumped the Crimson Tide up to No. 17 from No. 24.
He believes Alabama has an elite backcourt but has questions about the Tide's frontcourt. The questions could be fair, but with the obvious development of Aiden Sherrell, those questions won't last for long.
For CBS Sports, Gary Parrish jumped Alabama up significantly. He previously ranked Alabama at No. 24. In his updated rankings, the Crimson Tide leaped all the way up to No. 14.
On3's Jamie Shaw moved Alabama all the way up to No. 13. Another On3 writer is even higher on the Crimson Tide. James Fletcher III has Alabama at No. 10.
Perhaps the biggest jump Alabama saw upon Philon's decision to return for his sophomore season in Tuscaloosa was with Bart Torvik's algorithm. The analytics site initially had Alabama all the way down at No. 38 without Philon. With Philon returning, Alabama is now projected as the No. 19 team in the country. That's the difference between a comfortable tournament team and a bubble team. Missouri finished No. 19 last season on Bart Torvik, and received a 6-seed in the NCAA Tournament. West Virginia finished No. 38. They weren't selected in the 68-team field.
I still think Alabama is being undervalued by most. This team has a much higher defensive ceiling. There's more length on the wing and at guard than what Oats could deploy last season. This could be the best three-point shooting team in the nation, too.
The average three-point shooting percentage of the Tide's returning roster is 38.8%. And that's not counting guys who could take a significant leap shooting next season like Philon, Sherrell, and Jalil Bethea.
Holloway, Latrell Wrightsell, Houston Mallette, and Taylor Bol Bowen are all proven collegiate shooters who knocked down better than 40% of their attempts from deep in their last full seasons of basketball.
Philon was the missing piece for this roster to be complete. Oats still has one roster spot available, but this Alabama team looks like a contender on paper even if nothing else is added.