Anderson Diaz’s arrival may have given Nate Oats one more weapon in a roster that already looks loaded.
Alabama’s place in the preseason conversation barely moved after Amari Allen chose to put off his NBA plans for another year. That decision gave the Crimson Tide a welcome boost, but it didn’t really shake up the national outlook.
Bart Torvik has Alabama at No. 19 and fourth among SEC teams. ESPN’s Jeff Barzello slots the Tide at No. 15, also fourth in the league.
CBS Sports’ Mike Parrish, Jon Rothstein and Andy Katz all have Alabama sixth in the SEC, with Katz ranking the Tide No. 16 nationally, Parrish putting them at No. 19 and Rothstein at No. 22.
Back in early June, Aaron Torres had Alabama at No. 12 and called the Crimson Tide college basketball’s “most underrated team.” At that point, Torres listed Aden Holloway as a full participant after a plea deal gave him a path to have all charges dropped.
That was before Collins Onyejiaka was cleared for basketball activity. Now, with Onyejiaka available and Diaz reclassified, Oats has the deepest collection of talent he has had in his coaching career.
Diaz entered as a consensus five-star in the 2027 class before moving up to 2026, where he is now a highly ranked four-star. Alabama’s 2026 class sits No. 5 nationally in the 247Sports Composite.
It includes four top-50 players, with two of them ranked as five-stars by 247. Add in Alabama’s four recruits and four transfers, and Oats has college basketball’s No. 5 incoming talent group.
Diaz brings the kind of game that fits cleanly into what Alabama wants to do. He is a do-everything point guard, smaller than Labaron Philon but similar in the way he can get downhill and finish at the rim.
He also brings strong ball-handling and playmaking. The one area that still needs work is his three-point shot.
Last season at Overtime Elite, he shot 30% from deep, though that number jumped to 43% in seven games against EYBL opponents.
For now, Alabama does not need Diaz to carry a heavy load. Holloway and Amari Allen are expected to handle the primary on-ball duties, assuming Holloway completes his second-chance program and has his remaining two charges dismissed. Diaz, though, has the most traditional point guard skill set on the roster and looks like a natural fit for Oats’ system.
There is also a fit question defensively if Diaz and Holloway share the floor, since both are listed at 6-foot-1. That could make Alabama more vulnerable at that end.
Even so, an early role off the bench does not rule out something bigger later. By late February and March, Diaz could be the kind of player who swings a Crimson Tide run at the right time.
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It is an easy debate for Crimson Tide fans to jump into, especially with DeBoer having guided Alabama back to the College Football Playoff last season and now entering his third year in Tuscaloosa. McElroys point centered on DeBoers success against some coaches ranked ahead of him, which only adds to the case that the conversation around Alabamas coach may be lagging behind what he has actually done on the field. [Read more 🡒]