The Brandon Miller Experience is over for Nate Oats and Alabama Basketball as the swingman is headed to the Charlotte Hornets in the NBA and a new season is nearly upon us. The Crimson Tide will have a lot of holes to fill as they look to prominence in the SEC after winning both the conference regular season and conference tournament title in 2022-23.
Alabama will potentially feature four new faces out of the transfer portal and four freshman faces as they look to remain atop the conference this upcoming season. Forward Grant Nelson is the most notable name out of the transfer portal joining the rotation. At 6-foot-11, he’s a potential matchup problem as he joins the SEC out of the Summit League’s North Dakota State looking to make a splash. He’s also got NBA Draft implications with his addition, looking to replace Brandon Miller with his ability to operate at the stretch-forward spot.
Another name to keep an eye on in the backcourt is Aaron Estrada. He joins the Crimson Tide out of the CAA where he won back-to-back Player of the Year awards with the Hofstra Pride.
Alabama does return three players, four if you include redshirt freshman Davin Cosby Jr.. Mark Sears, Rylan Griffen and Nick Pringle will look to fill more prominent roles in the rotation while the transfers look to adjust to power conference hoops in the college basketball ranks.
The Crimson Tide have the potential to be a solid squad once again heading into a new year. Take a look at the projected starting rotation and depth chart for Alabama for 2023-24.
Point Guard
Starter – Mark Sears (25 mpg)
Mark Sears looks to provide some stability at the lead guard role for the Alabama Crimson Tide with his return. He fared well in his first season with Alabama after joining them out of the MAC. He averaged 12.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.6 apg and 1.2 spg on 34.5 percent from deep in his first year in the SEC. He’s got a ton of room to grow in the backcourt, especially scoring the ball.
He finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, including an 8-of-9 effort from the free-throw line in their one-point loss to San Diego State. He’ll certainly have a lot more to prove with his ability to attack off the bounce and make things happen in space for others in 2023-24.
Bench – Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (12 mpg), Davin Cosby Jr. (4 mpg)
Latrell Wrightsell Jr. is a name out of the transfer portal that should bolster the backcourt attack off the bench for Alabama this season. Wrightsell joins the rotation after spending the past three seasons at Cal State Fullerton. He’s coming off a breakout season where he put up 16.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.4 apg and 1.5 spg on 38.3 percent shooting from deep. He’s another guard with a knack for shooting the ball on the perimeter and making plays for others that should come in handy this season.
Davin Cosby should see some time at the third lead guard role as well. He redshirted this past season and should compete for minutes in the backcourt.
Shooting Guard
Starter – Aaron Estrada (30 mpg)
Aaron Estrada joins Alabama in the SEC with the potential to play big minutes in their backcourt this season given the wealth of experience he brings. He’s got nine games of experience in the Pac-12 under his belt back from his days with Oregon in 2020-21. He even won MAAC Rookie of the Year in his college debut with St. Peter’s back in 2019-20. For the past two seasons, he was the CAA Player of the Year with Hofstra while averaging 19.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 4.6 apg, and 1.5 spg on 36.8 percent shooting from deep and 47.8 percent shooting from the floor.
He’s quite the presence at 6-foot-3 that should provide two-way support in the Crimson Tide’s backcourt, especially with his defensive abilities. He finished ninth in the CAA this past season in defensive rating (97.6). If he can bring that same pedigree to the SEC, he’ll be a lethal backcourt combination to have alongside Mark Sears.
Bench – Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (10 mpg)
Wrightsell should get the bulk of his minutes at the other guard role, though, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see him move to the 3 and the Crimson Tide running a 3-guard front at times. Given their talent at the guard spot, both acquired and returning, there’s room for them to move some things around. Though Wrightsell is listed at 6-foot-3, it’s manageable given Grant Nelson’s abilities around the rim in the frontcourt.
Small Forward/Wing
Starter – Rylan Griffen (25 mpg)
Rylan Griffen is another returning face for Alabama that should see some starting minutes at the small forward/wing spot. He’s a 6-foot-5 presence who had a solid freshman debut with the Crimson Tide in 2022-23. He finished the season with 5.9 ppg and 2.6 rpg on 36.5 percent shooting from the floor across 37 appearances.
He’ll bring energy to the rotation with his ability to fly around and make plays at the rim and his ability to knock down the 3-ball. He was a pivotal piece off the bench for Alabama this past season as noted by a 16 points, two block, two rebound effort in a road victory over Auburn.
Bench – Jarin Stevenson (15 mpg)
Jarin Stevenson is the first young name that should get time for the Crimson Tide on the wing. Getting Stevenson to come to school early wasn’t a bad idea after seeing him shine on the EYBL stage with Team United (NC). He put up 12.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg and 1.8 apg on 45 percent shooting from the field this past EYBL season before moving from the 2024 class in North Carolina to 2023 and enrolling this past summer. He should be a solid piece for the Crimson Tide on the wing with his length and abilities at 6-foot-9.
Power Forward
Starter – Grant Nelson (30 mpg)
Grant Nelson is a name that grew hot in a hurry in the transfer portal this past offseason and in the end, he ended up in the SEC with the Crimson Tide. He’s developed into quite the forward prospect in the halfcourt after posting 17.9 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, and 1.7 bpg on 52.1 percent shooting from the field in 2022-23. He dropped a career-high 36 points on 13-of-20 shooting from the field, 2-of-5 shooting from deep, and 8-of-9 from the free-throw line against rival North Dakota back on Jan. 27. He’s a handful to deal with when he really gets going and efficient at that.
Nelson was a top name in the Summit League as he finished first in the league in rebounds (278), third in blocks (50), and first in field goal percentage. He’s a masterful creator inside the arc that can create on the wing and in the painted area for himself and others on the floor. He should be a dynamic forward for Nate Oats’ offense in 2023-24.
Bench – Nick Pringle (10 mpg), Sam Walters
Nick Pringle is a returner in the Alabama frontcourt who should be a glue guy for them on the interior this season. Pringle produced 3.5 ppg and 3.1 rpg in his debut season out of Dodge City (JUCO). He’s a name with room to develop in the Alabama frontcourt. Sam Walters should battle Pringle for playing time, though Pringle holds the edge given his experience.
Center/Forward
Starter – Mohamed Wague (25 mpg)
Mohamed Wague is another name out of the transfer portal, though with power conference experience, that should boost the Alabama rotation. He’s a 6-foot-10 big man who produced sparingly off the bench this past season in the Big 12 with the West Virginia Mountaineers.
Though he appeared in just 10.6 minutes of action, he managed to produce 4.1 ppg and 3.1 rpg. In his best outing this past season, he put up a double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds) off the bench, though it came in a loss to Kansas State back on Dec. 31.
Eight of those rebounds came on the offensive end. He’s climbed up the ranks a bit since developing at Harcum College (JUCO) back in 2021-22. He’ll look to bring his length and athleticism to Nate Oats’ defensive-minded rotation and make an impact.
Bench – Mouhamed Dioubate (8 mpg), Sam Walters (7 mpg)
Mouhamed Dioubate and Sam Walters should compete for minutes at the backup center/forward spot. Given, that there’s not much left in the frontcourt for the Crimson Tide to rely on, they’ll most likely lean heavily on Dioubate or Walters at the backup center spot or even move into a starting role. Wague isn’t proven at the center spot and doesn’t have any starting experience under his belt coming in.