We’re one week from Alabama basketball opening the regular season against Sam Houston, and the Crimson Tide’s three-game exhibition stretch gave us an early feel for Nate Oats’ 2026-27 group.
It wasn’t a complete look, with several key pieces missing time. Aden Holloway was suspended and will miss the first two regular-season games as well, which opened the door for others to step forward.
Some took it and ran with it. Others left a few questions hanging.
Here are the biggest winners and losers from the preseason slate.
Winners
Amari Allen
With Holloway sidelined, Amari Allen handled even more of the offense than he likely will during the season. That said, Alabama fans should probably get comfortable with the idea that he’ll be the main ball handler and initiator anyway.
Allen was excellent in all three games and only really had to put his foot on the gas late against Auburn. Across Furman, Ole Miss, and Auburn, he averaged a little over 20 points per game while doing it with elite efficiency. He shot better than 50% from the field and from beyond the arc and hit 84% of his free throws.
The leap was expected. Being one of Alabama’s two best players was expected. But Allen already looks like a serious SEC Player of the Year threat.
Cole Cloer
The Auburn game came and went without NC State transfer Cole Cloer because of an injury, but his first two exhibitions were enough to send the excitement level soaring.
He opened with 14 points and went 4-for-10 from three against Furman, then raised the bar against stronger competition. Against Ole Miss, Cloer finished with 18 points and 4 assists, showing he’s not just a shooter. He can create off the dribble, and he sees the floor at a high level.
At this point, he looks like much more than a rotation piece. Cloer may end up as one of Alabama’s top players, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he plays his way into the starting five.
Qayden Samuels
No one benefited more from Holloway’s absence than freshman Qayden Samuels, who got thrown right into the fire.
He came out looking like exactly what Alabama needs in a young guard: a scorer who can hit from outside, use his size against smaller defenders, and get downhill to the rim. He took 40 shots over the three exhibitions and averaged more than 16 points per game.
Holloway’s return should help him too, since more spacing will create better catch-and-shoot looks. But Samuels has already made his mark. Even in the Auburn game, when he went 6-of-19 from the field, he still led Alabama in plus-minus.
Tarris Bouie
Tarris Bouie’s exhibition run was uneven, but the upside keeps jumping off the page.
He announced himself against Furman with 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 steals, earning the Hard Hat in his debut. Against Ole Miss, the freshman got a little too wild and played only 14 minutes. Then he bounced back against Auburn with 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 stocks.
Minutes are going to be hard to come by on this roster, but Bouie plays like his head is on fire every time he checks in. That kind of energy is hard for Oats to ignore.
Losers
Collins Onyejiaka
Collins Onyejiaka’s freshman season was wiped out by a heart condition, and he’s now cleared. Even so, the exhibition games didn’t bring much of a reset.
He missed the Auburn game because of a minor injury, but he didn’t log any minutes against Furman or Ole Miss either. The fact that he couldn’t get on the floor against Furman, even in a game Alabama won by 18, says plenty.
There could still be spots here and there for Onyejiaka if the Tide need more size inside, but he looks a long way from being a true part of the regular rotation.
Brandon Garrison
Alabama got its first taste of the Jekyll-and-Hyde version of Brandon Garrison that Kentucky fans had already warned about.
He started the exhibitions in spectacular fashion, dropping 15 points and 4 rebounds on a perfect 7-for-7 shooting night in just 16 minutes against Furman.
After that, though, the production dipped. Against Ole Miss and Auburn, he totaled just 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting across 41 minutes. There were still flashes, but there were also turnovers that didn’t make sense and some questionable shot choices.
That’s the Garrison package. The good news for Alabama is that the frontcourt has enough depth that the Tide won’t have to live and die with the Kentucky transfer when the rough patches show up.
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