Nate Oats Weighs in on NBA G League Players Competing at College Level

The Alabama basketball head coach discusses one of the hottest topics in the sport, as multiple international professional players are competing in the NCAA.

Jan 3, 2026; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats reacts during the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats at Coleman Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: David Leong-Imagn Images | David Leong-Imagn Images

Whether it's NIL, the House settlement, rivalries or rankings, debates will never end in college sports. But perhaps the newest hot topic is that NBA G League players and international professionals are taking a step back into college basketball.

Taking this route could help players profit off their name, image and likeness often more than their compensation in the G League. It could also expose them a bit more to the basketball world and even NBA scouts. While adding players with professional experience could help a college basketball team, it would also take away scholarships and playing time from high schoolers interested in the program.

Alabama head coach Nate Oats weighed in on the hot topic with ESPN's Peter Burns and Chris Doering during Monday's SEC This Morning show on SiriusXM.

"If they're eligible and somebody else is going to get them, I wouldn't say that I'd be one of the guys that was necessarily for it to begin with," Oats said. "Because I think it's taking away opportunities from kids coming out of high school.

"I was a high school coach for 11 years. I wanted my kids to get opportunities when they left my program. This is taking opportunities away from those kids.

"But on a competitive level, if it's allowable, and they're going to be eligible to play and they're the better players that you can get, then you probably have to go after them."

There have been a few cases of this, including Baylor's recent acquisition of James Nnaji. The 21-year-old who previously played in Europe for four years was the No. 31 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but never ended up playing in an NBA game (excluding the Summer League). Nnaji was booed throughout the Bears' road loss to TCU this past Saturday, as he finished with five points, four rebounds and four fouls in 17 minutes.

While some coaches have liked the idea, others couldn't be more against it. Longtime Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo ranted about Louisville signing ex-NBA G League player London Johnson to its 2026 recruiting class. Others against it have been a bit more lighthearted, including St. John's head coach Rick Pitino, who joked about adding Greece's own nine-time NBA All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo to his roster.

In terms of Alabama, it doesn't seem like Oats has any interest in taking part in the hot topic based on the aforementioned quote. His staff is on the same page as him, as Crimson Tide assistant coach Preston Murphy has joked about signing Lamar Odom, with whom he was teammates with at Rhode Island during the 1998-99 season. Murphy even created an AI video of him signing the Monstars from Space Jam to Alabama's roster.

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— Preston Murphy (@coach_pmurph) December 27, 2025

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