'He's Playing Best Basketball of His Career': Alabama Guard Wins SEC Weekly Honor

No. 16 Alabama men's basketball had multiple players stand out during this past week's wins over Mississippi State and Tennessee, but Latrell Wrightsell Jr. shined among the rest of the conference.

The guard was recognized as the Co-SEC Player of the Week on Monday, sharing the honor with Missouri forward Mark Mitchell. It's the graduate's first honor this season.

Wrightsell averaged 21.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 turnovers in the victories over the Bulldogs and Volunteers. More specifically, here's a look at his individual numbers from each contest:

Mississippi State: 29 minutes, 18 points on 5 of 13 from the field, including 4 of 10 from deep, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and three turnovers.
Tennessee: 30 minutes, 25 points on 8 of 12 from the field, including 6 of 9 from deep, two rebounds, one assist and one steal.

"Wrightsell's been pretty good since he's gotten healthy," Alabama head coach Nate Oats said duringh Tuesday's press conference. "He's playing the best basketball of his career. Before he went on this offensive run — he's been one of the best players in the SEC here lately — he already had his defense locked in."

Wrightsell has missed a handful of games this season due to various injuries. It's been a bit of a concern, as his 2024-25 campaign ended very early after he ruptured his Achilles.

"With him, you get a little nervous," Oats said on Feb. 11 before facing Ole Miss. "He's a tough kid, puts himself in tough spots. Plays super hard. Just for whatever reason, he's been very unlucky with some of the injuries."

These injuries put Wrightsell in a bit of a slump earlier in the season, as from Dec. 7, 2025, to Jan. 3, he was shooting 31.2 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from behind the arc in that six-game span.

"A month ago or so, I gave him a copy of the book, 'The Obstacle is the Way,' from Ryan Holiday — great book if you haven't read it," Oats said before facing Ole Miss.. "Our whole team probably needs to read it with what we've had to go through this year with everything. We've just tried to dive into handling adversity. The book of James in the Bible talks about finding joy in your trials. I talked about that with him and the team.

"I think he's just been very mature. Obviously, you see the frustration when he goes out of the games. I thought he was ready to play at Auburn. He goes out, can't play the rest of the game. But [he went] right back in the training room, getting his rehab back in and he looked great tonight."

"I pray that he stays healthy the rest of the year, because this is a really good basketball player that has missed games in some of our losses. When we don't have him, we miss him a lot."

Wrightsell, who is the only player on Alabama's roster who was a member of the 2023-24 Final Four team, has become a role model over the past couple of years. This award encapsulates that.

Alabama Players with SEC Weekly Honors:

Week 1: Labaron Philon Jr. — Player of the Week
Week 3: Labaron Philon Jr. — Player of the Week; Amari Allen — Freshman of the Week
Week 4: Amari Allen — Co-Freshman of the Week
Week 5: Labaron Philon Jr. — Player of the Week
Week 10: Amari Allen — Freshman of the Week
Week 13: Labaron Philon Jr. — Co-Player of the Week
Week 16: Latrell Wrightsell Jr. — Co-Player of the Week