How Alabama's Injury Issues Can Benefit Tide in Long Run

Five different scholarship players have missed multiple games with injury or illness for the Crimson Tide so far this season, but it has allowed younger players to gain early experience.

Alabama head coach Nate Oats and forward Amari Allen talk during the second half of the game against Clemson on Dec. 3, 2025. | Sarah Munzenmaier/Alabama Crimson Tide on SI

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Nate Oats has put together one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country, including a matchup with No. 1 Arizona in Birmingham on Saturday night, but the schedule hasn't been the only big challenge for Oats with his Alabama team so far this season.

Between Aden Holloway (3), Jalil Bethea (7), Taylor Bol Bowen (1), Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (5), Keitenn Bristow (3) and Collins Onyejiaka (7), Alabama scholarship players have combined to miss 29 games with injury or illness through the Crimson Tide's first nine games of the season.

Some of the injuries happened in the preseason, like Bethea's and Bristow's, that caused a delayed start to the season. Others have re-aggrivated old injuries or suffered new ones during the first part of the non-conference slate. Injuries themselves are never a good thing for a player or team but because of all the injuries and missed time from veteran players, it has allowed the Crimson Tide's younger players like Amari Allen, London Jemison and Davion Hannah to get a lot of early experience that probably wouldn't have happened otherwise.

"We've had players get a lot more playing time than maybe what they would have gotten if everybody was healthy early, particularly some of these freshmen, which has helped them along if you will," Oats said during a Friday press conference. "Amari’s been great for us, but he’s playing more with Wrightsell out, Holloway out some, different guys. London’s been playing well here lately. He’s been able to play more minutes. Taylor’s was out. Keitenn’s been out. London’s gotten more minutes. Davion’s gotten more minutes."

This Saturday against Arizona will already be the third time this year that Alabama has faced an opponent ranked in the top-five at the time of the matchup. Things will get a little easier in the final three non-conference games in December against South Florida, Kennesaw State and Yale, but then the Crimson Tide will jump right into the meat grinder that is conference play. There are currently six SEC teams in the AP Top 25.

Allen is averaging 27.8 minutes per game while Jemison is at 14.3 and Hannah with 12.8 minutes per game. All three freshmen have already had double-digit scoring performances, and Allen has scored at least 10 points in each of Alabama's last five games.

The experience gained against quality opponents early in their careers will only help the Crimson Tide later in the season where it will be pushing to make another deep NCAA tournament run under Oats.

"I think some of the younger guys have been able to benefit from more minutes due to some of these older guys [being out]," Oats said. "And when get everybody back healthy, we’ll be better for it because the younger guys have gotten more experience than they would’ve gotten had everybody been healthy every game from Game 1 on. I think it’s going to help us in the long run."

Oats gives a lot of credit to head trainer Clarke Holter for how he's handled Alabama's injury situation this season and not rushing players back too early. He repeatedly called Holter the best trainer in the country.

"It’s put a little stress on the coaching staff to figure some stuff out, but that’s what we’re paid to do," Oats said. "We gotta figure it out. Even when we’ve gone on some of our NCAA tournament runs, we’ve had guys hurt early. You’ve just got to figure out how to play without ‘em, put a game plan in. And then when you get them back, insert ‘em back in the lineup and figure it out.”