For many years, it wasn’t a surprise to hear the following statement:
“No one cares about Alabama basketball recruiting, especially not during football season.”
And then Avery Johnson came to town.
Now, there are just as many basketball recruiting threads on the Alabama message boards as there are football recruiting threads. The revived interest isn’t just reserved for the pay sites, it has also been reflected throughout the various social media platforms.
Not only has there been a noticeable difference inside Coleman Coliseum but there is also one outside of the arena as well. The program is changing for the better, and fans are noticing.
Last year Johnson and his staff brought in what many are calling the best recruiting class in the program’s history, and it’s hard to argue otherwise.
When studs like Herb Jones and Alex Reese, who would’ve been the crown jewels of an Alabama basketball class in year’s past, are considered the sleepers of the class you know there’s about to be a drastic talent influx in Tuscaloosa.
But even that would be an understatement. Johnson has loaded the roster with NBA talent, and he’s showing no signs of letting off the gas on the recruiting front.
Like with Collin Sexton last year, the staff has gone out and identified unranked hidden gems before few big time programs in the country could and have established a relationship with those players immediately.
Also like with Sexton, the prospects the Crimson Tide staff identified have shot up the recruiting boards and have gone from unranked to Top 100 players.
I’m referring to Jared Butler and Javian Fleming, two prospects that were unranked this time last year but are now hot commodities among blue bloods like Georgetown and Virginia. Both have been to campus several times and have hosted the staff more than once as well.
Both Butler and Fleming are priorities for Alabama and are two that I have on “Commitment Watch”.
Another prospect the Crimson Tide staff has prioritized is Robert Woodard, a four-star prospect out of Mississippi and son of a Mississippi State legacy.
Woodard is someone who has been at the top of the Crimson Tide’s board for a while. He is no stranger to the recruiting gurus and was highly ranked in being named the Gatorade Player of the Year in Mississippi last year.
Unlike Butler and Fleming, who I could see signing early, Woodard appears to be leaning towards signing in the late period.
Similar to last year, nothing would make the Tide staff happier than going into Georgia and plucking one of the state’s top talents. This year’s target is 6-8, 187-pound small forward Khavon Moore. He has visited The Capstone as well as hosted Tide coaches at his school.
Many have Moore as a Florida lean, but I wouldn’t count Alabama out just yet.
Last, but certainly not least, is a home state talent in 6-8 power forward Trey Jemison.
The Hoover product has flown under the radar of many schools, but the Tide staff dropped by last week signifying he is certainly on their radar.
Don’t be surprised to see the Tide staff in Hoover early and often this fall and winter when Jemison tips off.
I would not be surprised to see any or all the names mentioned above in the Tide’s class.
Of course, there is also the chance of a name I haven’t mentioned appearing on the Bama board, but these are the names the staff seem to be focusing on at the present.
If a new name appears on the board, we’ll be the first to let you know.