Amari Allen is prepared to use all the time on the clock before making his official determination on his basketball future.
The Crimson Tide's star freshman told 247's Brett Greenberg on Thursday night that he would make his final decision on staying in the NBA Draft or returning to Alabama for his sophomore season on May 27th, the final day of the NCAA's deadline to do so. In between now and then, Allen stated he had four workouts set up with teams as he continues to try to push his way up the draft boards.
The smoke coming out of last week's NBA Combine in Chicago has continued to point toward Allen as a fringe first-round prospect, pointing toward him returning to Tuscaloosa for another season of college basketball. Allen stated at the Combine that it would take a first-round promise to keep him in the draft, and it does not appear, barring something unforeseen in the next few days, that will happen.
If Allen needs further data points to point his compass back toward the Druid City, The Field of 68's Jeff Goodman graciously provided them on Friday. Goodman posted on his X account that he polled 10 NBA executives on a bevy of prospects facing stay-or-go decisions in the coming days. All 10 agreed that Allen should return to college:
I talked to 10 NBA executives and got their takes on what these guys should do:
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) May 22, 2026
Christian Anderson: 10 (go to NBA), 0 (back to college)
Meleek Thomas: 9 (NBA), 1 (college)
Allen Graves: 8 (NBA), 2 (college)
Tounde Yessoufou: 5 (NBA), 5 (college)
Koa Peat: 7 (college), 3 (NBA)…
NBA executive poll points Amari Allen back to Alabama in 2026-27
Allen's pending decision is the pivot point of the offseason for Nate Oats and company. If he elects to remain in the draft, as unexpected as that is at this point in time, then the Crimson Tide will have to turn to "Plan B" and make an aggressive push for a guard in the Transfer Portal. Aden Holloway's legal issues putting his future up in the air only serves to exacerbate that fact.
Contrary to what some may choose to believe, the recent commitment of 4-star 2027 guard Anderson Diaz is not part of Alabama's "Plan B." The belief is that Diaz will work toward a reclassification in the coming months that puts him on Alabama's 2026-27 roster, but that's part of "Plan A" with Allen and Holloway also in tow.
Diaz, as a would-be high school senior, would not be expected to take the role of either Allen or Holloway. Anything Alabama can get out of him as a freshman, assuming he's able to reclass, would be a bonus.
Allen had an outstanding freshman season for the Crimson Tide, quickly exceeding all expectations anyone had for him. He put himself on the radar of the NBA immediately, and while he could jump to the league now and hear his name called within the first 35-40 picks, a return to Alabama could net him similar rewards as Labaron Philon's decision did.
Philon faced the same stay-or-go decision as Allen with similar draft stock. Philon ultimately elected to return to Alabama, where he led the Crimson Tide with 22 points per game and was named to the All-American 3rd Team.
If Allen can make the type of jump he clearly expects as a sophomore, he could see a similar meteoric rise in the 2027 draft class.
Add us as a preferred source on Google