Alabama Fans Tender Award For The Players For Creating Bearable Legacies For The Team…

Nate Oats knew when he took the Alabama basketball head-coaching job ahead of the 2019-2020 season that the Crimson Tide had the infrastructure to build a winner.
Obviously, Nick Saban had done so and more with the Tide on the gridiron, but Oats felt comfortable that the university and athletic program as a whole was built to succeed regardless of sport.

“When I got the job, I thought before I ever took the job, Rick, my agent and me talked, and he said, ‘Look, they’ve got all the resources you need to be able to win at Alabama. We need to go get this job.’ I trust him. He knows what he’s doing. They do have all the resources you need to win,” Oats recently told the media (h/t On3) when discussing Alabama’s run to the Final Four. “We put together a few good teams. You just need to keep knocking on the door.”

he Tide have knocked on the door and more during this March Madness run, beating No. 13 Charleston and No. 12 Grand Canyon before two massive wins over No. 1 North Carolina in the Sweet 16 and No. 6 Clemson in the Elite 8.

The last two wins, in particular, were no small deal. Alabama had to dig deep to beat the top-seeded Tar Heels, 89-87, and Clemson was as hot as they come with wins over No. 3 Baylor and No. 2 Arizona ahead of the Elite 8.

Credit Oats’ team for coming up with the big wins, but he also revealed that he spoke to a few legends ahead of the contest with Clemson in order to try to figure out a pathway for the Tide.

How do you make it to the Final Four? Oats spoke with a few coaches who know a thing or two about winning big games.

“We looked at some other teams that were similar to this. Syracuse did it twice. I called Jim Boeheim on that Sunday, like, ‘What have we got to do?’ I called Frank Martin. South Carolina made a Final Four run when they weren’t hot at the end of the year. I asked him what he did. I tried to pick the brain. I called Coach [Nick] Saban. ‘What have we got to do?’ And he kind of gave me the ‘next’ idea — next, next, next,” Oats said.

What’s next for Alabama is a Final Four matchup with the defending national champion UConn Huskies for a chance to play either Purdue or NC State in the final.

“We can make this run. Other teams have done it. We have the capability to do it,” Oats said.

Alabama used message from Nick Saban to spur Final Four run

Oct 21, 2023; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban does his traditional walk around at Bryant-Denny Stadium before a game against the Tennessee Volunteers. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

The Alabama Crimson Tide might have Nick Saban to thank, at least in part, for their run to the Final Four.

Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats admitted that he leaned on Saban prior to the team’s NCAA Tournament run. Oats said that a message from Saban was very helpful in refocusing the team after an underwhelming end to the regular season.

“He kind of gave me the ‘next’ idea — next, next, next,” Oats said, via Joe Reedy of the Associated Press. “So guys bought in. We can make this run. Other teams have done it. We have the capability to do it. … We can have the No. 1 offense in the country; we had it for the majority of the year. Let’s put a top-20 defense together and we can make a Final Four.”

Leaning on Saban makes plenty of sense for Oats. By most accounts, Saban is happy to help, even though there were some claims of discord behind the scenes last year.

Saturday’s win over Clemson ensured that the Crimson Tide would make their first Final Four in school history. It is perhaps only natural that Saban would have a hand in that, too.

It’s not an April’s Fool’s joke: Alabama will hold a men’s basketball practice Monday in Tuscaloosa.

Typically when the calendar turns to April, the Tide’s attention has turned to the offseason. But with a Final Four game Saturday against UConn in Phoenix, there is more work to be done on the practice floor.

Alabama is the underdog of the Final Four and to upset the No. 1 overall seed Huskies, it will need to topple a team that likely will have multiple first-round picks when the 2024 NBA draft begins June 26.

UConn center Donovan Clingan is ESPN’s No. 3 ranked player for the 2024 draft, and the top-ranked United States college player. CBS Sports ranks Clingan as the 11th-best prospect for the draft.

Clingan is joined as a potential lottery pick by guard Stephon Castle, who is ranked No. 14 by ESPN and No. 10 by CBS Sports. The Huskies also have a probable second-round pick in forward Alex Karaban, who is CBS Sports’ 37th-ranked player and ESPN’s 50th-ranked. UConn guards Cam Spencer (No. 61 by ESPN) and Tristen Newton (No. 87) are currently outside the top-ranked players for the 58-pick draft but are on the NBA radar.