Nate Oats Offers the Latest on Josh Primo: "He's Getting Better"

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — University of Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats offered an update on freshman guard Josh Primo during a video conference with the media on Wednesday afternoon.

“He is not even really jogging or anything yet,” Oats said. “He’s getting better and feels better every day, but we’re not gonna rush him into anything. If there’s any way him playing could hurt him down the road, we’re not gonna do that for him. Unless there’s significant progress here over the next few days, I don’t know that he’ll be playing Saturday. But we’ll see.

“Clarke (Holter)’s good. He’s got him in rehab all the time, getting stuff done. He was able to shoot a little bit. It’s more like form shooting in one spot. He’s not really running, jumping or anything yet.”

Primo sprained his MCL in the SEC Tournament against Mississippi State last Friday and missed games against Tennessee and LSU. He was averaging 8.1 points and 3.4 rebounds across 28 appearances.

The native Canadian earned a spot on the SEC's All-Freshman Team for his efforts.

“His mentality has been great,” guard Jaden Shackelford said of his teammate. “The second after he got injured, he’s been pushing himself to get better and try to be back as soon as possible. He’s attacking his rehab, and he’s getting better every day. I’m glad to see him pushing that.”

Alabama is scheduled to face Iona in the opening round of the 2021 NCAA tournament on Saturday afternoon (3 p.m. TBS) inside the historic Hinkle Fieldhouse.