University of Alabama Basketball Coach Nate Oats served as speaker Tuesday at the Walker County Bama Club Fall Kick-Off at Musgrove Country Club.
Despite only having three players returning to the program for the upcoming season, Oats has high expectations for a team that again will have one of the toughest schedules in the country, having Gonzaga, Houston and Michigan State on tap this year.
In three seasons, Oats has a 61-36 record. He led Alabama to SEC regular season and tournament titles as well as the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament in the 2020-21 season. The team also advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season, losing in the first round.
The Crimson Tide recently returned from a 3-game European tour with wins over the Spain Select Team (108-64), Lithuania B National Team (120-61) and the Chinese National Team (89-77). China came into the game ranked No. 29 in the world FIBA rankings.
“A lot of times the competition on foreign tours is not very good, but it’s felt like these were better than teams I’ve coached against on foreign tours in the past, especially the Chinese National Team,” Oats said. “China is a big country, and this is their top team. They had a lot of size, several 7-footers.”
Oats said the life experience and comradary that came from the trip was as important as the time spent on the court.
“With the lack of experience our team has playing together, this was a good trip to help the guys come together,” Oats added.
Brandon Miller, 6-foot-9 freshman, led Alabama in scoring during each of the foreign contests. Oats said Miller is a special play. “who will most likely be here one year and then possibly be a lottery pick” in the NBA draft next year.
Other new players highlighted during Oats’ speech in Jasper were guards Jaden Bradley, Mark Sears and Dom Welch, along with forward Noah Clowney. Returning players mentioned were guard Jahvon Quinerly, forward Darius Miles and center Charles Bediako.
“We didn’t have enough guards last year, Oats said. “With our style, we want four guards out there sometimes, but last year we only had four guards.”
Oats added he felt depth is going to play a big role in improving defense this season.
“We have much more depth with this group, and we have more strength and length,” he said. “We will be better on defense this year.”
Former Alabama player Lawson Schaffer, a Cullman native, helped direct the speech by asking questions, while Oats also answered questions from the crowd.
The event was a fundraiser for the Walker County Bama Club, which is an alumni group that gives more than 20 scholarships each year to area students.
