One of the prizes of Alabama's Transfer Portal haul this offseason was Florida State forward Taylor Bol Bowen. A true two-way, versatile player with a good three-point shot, length to guard inside and out, and the ability to handle the ball, Bol Bowen seemed like just what the doctor ordered for the Crimson Tide.
He may still be, but it's clear after two exhibition games and Monday night's season-opening win over North Dakota that Nate Oats expects a lot more than he's getting out of Bol Bowen.
There's a reason Tarleton State transfer Keitenn Bristow started in Bol Bowen's place for the second exhibition. That was a direct message to the FSU transfer that more was expected out of him. He started the season opener with Bristow out with a minor ankle injury, but even with Alabama only having nine scholarship players available, Bol Bowen played just 18 minutes. That was the seventh most on the team and behind a trio of true freshmen.
The reason for that was obvious: Bol Bowen's effort wasn't as high as others, particularly on the glass. He also gave up two easy buckets at the rim within the first couple of minutes of the game and found himself immediately on the bench.
During his postgame press conference, Oats - while answering questions about others on the team - took multiple opportunities to send not-so-subtle messages to the transfer forward.
"We need some rebounding at the four-spot," Oats said. "It's really lacking right now."
Later, when talking about Houston Mallette's energy and effort, he sent more shade toward Bol Bowen:
"I told our team in the locker room afterward, some of you guys are struggling to go get offensive rebounds. Taylor had zero. He had zero in the exhibition. He doesn’t get offensive rebounds ever. Go look at Houston, study Houston’s film.
"We have a few guys that need to learn how to play as hard as Houston plays. And if they did, we’d be a lot better team."
Alabama needs more from Taylor Bol Bowen moving forward
Bol Bowen is a critical part of this team. His versatility to play on the wing or even as a small-ball five. For Alabama to reach the potential it has, Bol Bowen has to be better than he's looked in the small sample we've seen so far.
Alabama ran the first action of the game on Monday night for him. It led to an easy layup for the FSU transfer on an assist by Labaron Philon. He finished the game with just eight points and three rebounds, with all three boards coming on the defensive end.
With his length and athleticism, he should be a pretty good offensive rebounder. Oats knows that. That's a weapon for this offense that could be key. It's clearly something Oats is trying to pull out of him - it's also something that has trended in the wrong direction for him in his career so far.
Bol Bowen averaged 3.6 offensive rebounds per 40 minutes in his freshman season at Florida State. That number dropped to 1.9 last season in Tallahassee.
Oats will continue to push Bol Bowen to bring more effort. He'll either get that message, or we'll see more minutes for Bristow and guys like Amari Allen and Davion Hannah, instead.