Some college basketball coaches might not like living in the shadow of the football program. Nate Oats has never shied away from it at Alabama, however.
On the contrary, what some see as a potential detriment with football getting the bulk of the resources, Oats uses as an advantage, particularly when it comes to hosting official visitors.
The fall is always busy for official visits in basketball before the season gets underway. Oats tends to try to schedule as many as he can for big football weekends because the buzz in Tuscaloosa is always palpable and the environment in Bryant-Denny Stadium is infectious.
There's no bigger home game on the schedule next season, at least before the start of the basketball season, than Alabama's matchup with Georgia on October 10th. It's no surprise that Oats is using it as a recruiting springboard for his program.
Alabama now has two critical visitors scheduled for that date, both of which were announced on Thursday. Using his new recruiting advantage thanks to his role with USA Basketball, Oats set up a visit with one of the top players in the class, 5-star Tennessee native Malachi Jordan.
Later on Thursday, it was announced that 4-star point guard TJ Jamison would be joining Jordan on a visit on October 10th:
4⭐️ TJ Jamison has scheduled an official visit to Alabama, he told @Rivals.
— Joe Tipton (@JoeTipton) June 4, 2026
The 6-2 point guard is a top-40 overall recruit in the 2027 class. https://t.co/lgxkVk5uHf pic.twitter.com/sYO1KyypAk
4-star guard TJ Jamison to visit Alabama on October 10th with Malachi Jordan
Jamison is the No. 39 overall player in the Rivals industry rankings. Per Rivals/On3, he's already taken an official visit to Maryland and will take an official trip to Iowa next weekend. The trip to Tuscaloosa is his first visit scheduled for the fall.
The Rivals prediction machine currently favors the Crimson Tide slightly over the Hawkeyes, but there's a lot of recruiting to be done here. Jamison is a Shreveport native, so Will Wade and LSU figure to play a role in his recruitment, though Wade seems to be ignoring high school recruiting in his second stint in Baton Rouge in favor of building a roster almost exclusively featuring international professionals.
Oats will be in the market for lead guards in the 2027 class. Amari Allen will likely enter the NBA Draft following his sophomore season, and Aden Holloway is entering his final season of eligibility.
Alabama already holds a commitment from a 4-star lead guard in the 2027 class in Anderson Diaz, who announced his pledge to the Crimson Tide in May. The expectation is, however, that Diaz will ultimately reclassify into the 2026 class and join this year's Alabama team.
Oats has consistently landed elite recruiting classes during his time as Alabama's head coach. Jordan and Jamison would be a pair of outstanding additions that would allow that to continue.
Add us as a preferred source on Google