Recruiting Corner: Nate Oats Updates Where Things Stand for Crimson Tide in 2021 Cycle
Starting on Nov. 11, the early signing period for men's basketball opens up and University of Alabama coach Nate Oats believes his three current 2021 commits, guard JD Davison, JUCO standout Langston Wilson, and wing Jusuan Holt will sign on the dotted for the Crimson Tide then.
“We’re expecting those guys to sign, and we’re still recruiting other guys,” Oats told the media via Zoom on Thursday. “We’ve got some that we’ve been heavily involved with for a long time now that we’re recruiting. I don’t know if they’ll commit before signing day or if they’ll let it go longer. They changed the rules on everything. Obviously, we can’t get out. We thought we’d be able to see signed guys, and now they just changed that to where they’re not. So, outside of a guy just wanting to be done with the recruiting process, the signing doesn’t give a ton of extra advantages."
Two more names for fans to keep an eye on are Charles Bediako and Wesley Cardet Jr..
Bediako is a 6-foot-11, 215 pound big man who comes from the pool of Canadians that Oats and company have had success in landing from the 2020 cycle like guard Josh Primo and forward Keon Ambrose-Hylton.
Alabama will continue to battle against Duke, Michigan, Ohio State, and Texas for his services.
If the Crimson Tide can pull it off, imagine a lineup next season with Bediako and Alex Tchikou, who is 6-foot-11 and recovering from an Achilles that will hold him out of this year.
Cardet, a 6-foot-6 combo guard, has the size and athleticism that Oats and his coaching staff value in their system. Along with the Crimson Tide, Auburn, and Kansas State are in the mix for the Orlando native.
The expectation is for Alabama to sign at least two more guys, minimum.
“Whether they go early or late, we’re gonna keep recruiting as hard as we can," Oats said. "We’ve added a few guys in the 2021 class to our recruiting board. We’re working on getting Zooms set up. We’re still going after it. We’re still planning on signing five. We’ll see if that changes. Plan on signing three for sure early, and if we get two late, stuff obviously changes. We signed one early last year and ended up signing five late. I doubt it’s gonna be that many additional late this year. I hope not. But who knows what happens.”
BamaCentral's Tyler Martin breaks it all down in this week's Recruiting Corner.
