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Alabama Basketball: 2021-22 season preview and outlook for Crimson Tide

By Matthew Travis

Mar 14, 2021; Nashville, TN, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats (L) hands the championship trophy to forward Alex Reese (R) after defeating the LSU Tigers at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 14, 2021; Nashville, TN, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats (L) hands the championship trophy to forward Alex Reese (R) after defeating the LSU Tigers at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /
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Calhoun’s JD Davison
Calhoun’s JD Davison /

Projected Starters

Guard: JD Davison, Freshman

JD Davison will undoubtedly be one of the starting guards for Alabama this season. Davison is the best recruit out of the state of Alabama since Demarcus Cousins back in 2009, which just goes to show you how good Davison is already.

Davison is the 12th ranked player in the Class of 2021, the third-ranked point guard, and the top-ranked player in the state of Alabama. Davison is a swiss army knife, he has the ability to throw down highlight-reel dunks, is able to hit pull-up shots, can hit threes, and he has very good handles as well.

Guard: Jahvon Quinerly, Junior

Another starting guard will be Jahvon Quinerly, who comes into the 2021-22 season as a member of the Bob Cousy Award watchlist, which is awarded to the nation’s top point guard. After being forced to sit out the 2019-20 season because of the transfer rules, Quinerly had a very solid 2020-21 season with the Tide.

In 30 games, Quinerly averaged 12.9 points, 3.2 assists, and 2.2 rebounds, but he really thrived in the SEC and NCAA Tournaments where he averaged 15.3 points, 4.2 assists, and 3.2 rebounds, coming off the bench for Alabama. Quinerly is going to be a key factor for Alabama’s success, this season.

Guard: Jaden Shackelford, Junior

The third starting guard for Alabama will be their leading scorer from last season, Jaden Shackelford. Last season with Alabama, Shackelford played 33 games and averaged 14.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and was named to the Second Team All-SEC, so getting him back for his junior season, is very big for the Crimson Tide.

Having Shackelford start alongside Davison, and Quinerly, is going to be a dynamic trio for Nate Oats and Alabama, as Shackelford is arguably the best shooter of the three, and will pair nicely with Davison and Quinerly who are very skilled when it comes to their dribbling and getting to the rim.

Power Forward: Noah Gurley, Graduate Student

Starting at power forward for Alabama will likely be Noah Gurley, who transferred to Alabama from Furman, this past offseason. Gurley is a 6’8” 190lb small forward who last season with Furman started all 25 games he appeared in, and averaged 15.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game, while also adding 0.9 steals and 1.1 blocks per game as well.

Gurley will be a great pairing to Alabama’s three-guard set, Gurley is capable of tallying rebounds, but he’s also a three-point threat, as he had a 33.9% three-point percentage last season, and with Nate Oats loving the three-ball, one can only imagine he will shoot quite a few this season for the Tide.

Center: Charles Bediako, Freshman

Alabama has two options to start at center this year, being incoming freshman Charles Bediako, and redshirt freshman Alex Tchikou who missed last season with a torn ACL. However, I think Charles Bediako will be the starter for the Tide.

Bediako is a 6’11” 215-pound center, who is the 6th ranked center in the Class of 2021, and the 34th ranked player overall. Bediako is a classic big man who is capable of playing on both sides of the ball, and I would fully expect him to have a solid season for Alabama.

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