Alabama Basketball: 2018-19 season preview for the Crimson Tide
By Dakota Cox
Starting Lineup
PG: Kira Lewis
SG: John Petty
SF: Dazon Ingram
PF: Tevin Mack
C: Donta Hall
Avery Johnson likes to play positionless basketball, so the traditional position names mean practically nothing. He basically has one ball handler, three wings, and a post in his starting lineup. Mack will play some at the block, but he’s better outside. Ingram might take the ball out of Kira’s hands for some plays, but this isn’t a consistent strategy that I expect to see often. It’s more about situational basketball.
Johnson will run whatever play gives him the advantage over a specific team. He finds the mismatch that he needs for any game. That might be giving Donta Hall a dozen possessions in the post, or it might be feeding the hot hand in John Petty behind the arc. It could also be feeding cuts or isolation plays.
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This starting lineup has the versatility, to say the least. You have plenty of defense in Hall. You have a scoring threat in Mack. You have a mixture of both in Ingram. You even have a blue-chip prospect in Petty. None of this even includes Kira Lewis, the high-level freshman from the 2018 class.
Having the returning starter can be a blessing in college, but there’s also the added bonus that these aren’t Alabama’s only starters. The Tide had many players who started multiple games for them.