Alabama Basketball: Crimson Tide set to host two five-star recruits this weekend

Alabama basketball is looking to add their first commitment in the class of 2017 in the near future.

With head coach Avery Johnson heading into his second season, the Alabama Crimson Tide remain in a full rebuilding mode.

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The best way to speed up the process? Land some of the top talent on the recruiting trail.

Alabama isn’t there just yet, but they will have an opportunity to impress two five-star recruits, Collin Sexton and Troy Brown Jr., this weekend as both players will be in Tuscaloosa for official visits.

https://twitter.com/Troy_Brown33/status/762056529612722176

Sexton, who has an in-house visit on Friday with Kansas, is currently ranked 10th on ESPN’s top 100 for the class of 2017. The 6’3″, 175 pound guard from Mableton, GA is the second best shooting guard in the country and is the second best player in the state of Georgia in the 2017 class.

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The Pebblebrook High School product trimmed his list to 10 schools in late July with Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Kansas, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Oklahoma State and Villanova surviving the first cut down.

Sexton was the top riser of the summer as he showed off his dynamic scoring ability, passion for the game of basketball, competitiveness and defensive intensity. There were questions as to if he could play point guard in college, but Sexton did prove that he has an underrated ability to make his teammates better, especially in transition.

If Sexton gets stronger and develops a more consistent jump shot, he is going to be a future pro.

Regardless, he would put people in the seats at Alabama because of his scoring and attacking mentality.

Meanwhile, Brown has already scheduled all five of his official visits. His first was a trip to Columbus on the opening weekend of September. After taking a peak at Alabama, the 6’6″, 210 pound small forward will visit Oregon, Kansas and Georgetown in the coming weeks.

As the 18th best player in the class of 2017 (according to ESPN), Brown is ranked 5th at small forward position and is the top player in the state of Nevada.

Even though Brown is labeled as a small forward, he has elite versatility. He can play numerous different positions on the perimeter due to his length, size, passing ability, ball handling skills and athleticism. He’s an excellent defender, who is capable of switching all over the floor.

Like Sexton, Brown could use some consistency from long range and added strength. However, there are very few 2017 prospects that have the physical tools and flexibility that he possesses.

The two top-20 talents played together on the U-18 World Championships team this summer (they won gold), so they familiar with each other’s games and personalities. It would be a bit of a long shot for them to both commit to Alabama, but any visits from top players will put the Crimson Tide on the map.

Since Johnson took over in 2015, Bama has not reeled in one five-star recruit. This year they have four-star forward Braxton Key and JUCO small forward Ar’Mond Davis joining the roster.

Alabama doesn’t necessarily have to add commitments from five-star players to win games in the SEC – in fact, four-year players that develop continuity on the roster would be best. But that doesn’t mean this weekend isn’t important for Johnson and Alabama.

Next: Syracuse's rotation expectations

First impressions are always key and you never know what will strike home with a certain recruit.