The Alabama Basketball team has landed its first transfer and it's a massive one in South Florida Guard Chris Youngblood. It's a homecoming for the AAC Player of the Year as Youngblood is a Tuscaloosa native. Youngblood is coming off a season scoring 15.3 points per game with 2.5 rebounds per game and 2.1 assists per game. He will have one season of eligibility remaining. He'll thrive in the Nate Oats system as a 40% three-point shooter across his last three seasons. While he's a great shooter from deep, Youngblood also takes a quarter of his shots at the rim where he's a 46% scorer.
Alabama lands a sniper in co-AAC player of the year and Tuscaloosa native Chris Youngblood. High level scorer and great leader with tons of experience. Helped lead USF to an incredible season in year 1 of AAR pic.twitter.com/LeBEFUmv5d
— Matt Landry (@Landry1117) April 13, 2024
After losing Rylan Griffen, Kris Parker, and Davin Cosby Jr it seemed evident that Alabama Basketball would load up in the transfer portal. If Mark Sears leaves, the Tide will have Youngblood and Houston Mallette in the backcourt. Both are 41% three-point shooters with loads of scoring ability.
The addition of Youngblood means there are likely more departures on the way as the team has zero scholarships open. The team still awaits NBA Draft decisions from Mark Sears, Grant Nelson, and Latrell Wrightsell Jr., meaning we may see scholarships open without transfers.
Reloading via the transfer portal is the way to go for Nate Oats heading into 2024-25. He's added two guards who will bring loads of experience and have shown an ability to score at the college level. The upside with transfers isn't as high as with high school recruits but, Nate Oats knows what he's getting with Youngblood and Mallette.
Who else does Alabama Basketball nab?
The Tide have landed a pair of guards in the transfer portal but, they're going to remain active in the transfer portal. The Tide are circling a few big men with Rutgers star Clifford Omoruyi being the most sought after. The team has also reached out to guards Roddy Gayle Jr. and Marcus Hill, and forward Frankie Fidler. Nate Oats has a group that can win a National Championship next season, so expect him to go all in via the transfer portal.