re: Bama Basketball Offseason Megathread

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Goodman is absolute dogshit as a basketball “analyst”

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Whenever a high-major program hires a coach from a non-power school, one main question arises: Can he recruit at this level? That same doubt followed Nate Oats to Alabama. Sure, he had a phenomenal run at Buffalo, winning 32 games in 2018, including an NCAA Tournament game. But could a guy who was a high school coach as recently as 2013, with no Division I experience outside of the MAC, attract top-shelf talent?

Consider that question answered affirmatively and emphatically. The Crimson Tide’s 2020 class — the first full recruiting cycle for Oats and his staff — finished at No. 12 according to 247Sports.com and No. 9 according to Rivals. It was only the third time in the past decade that Alabama had landed a top-15 class. The six-man group includes two top-100 players in shooting guard Josh Primo and power forward Alex Tchikou, plus one of the most coveted grad transfers in former Yale star Jordan Bruner and one of the top junior college prospects in guard Keon Ellis.

Of the six, only 6-foot-8 forward Keon Ambrose-Hylton signed on in the fall, as Oats got a taste of what recruiting four- and five-star kids is like.

“Initially, we went after lot of heavy guys,” he says. “And we made a lot of final fives. It’s easier to get involved with kids at this level, but harder to close the deal. These kids have a lot more options than the kids we were recruiting to Buffalo, so we probably need more options, too. You get told no more here.”

Two things helped swing the momentum in the spring. Recruits got to see Oats’ player-friendly style of play in action. Alabama finished fourth in adjusted tempo in his first season in Tuscaloosa and tied for fourth nationally in 3-point attempts. The addition of former Villanova point guard and ex-McDonald’s All-American Jahvon Quinerly last summer also helped. He transferred to the Tide in the summer and sat out the season. But Oats showed prospects video of Quinerly making precision passes in practice, and his name resonated with recruits who wanted to play alongside other blue-chippers.

Oats’ ace card is assistant Bryan Hodgson. Like Oats, Hodgson comes from a modest background. He coached at the grassroots level and in junior college before Oats brought him on staff at Buffalo. Hodgson, 33, has quickly gained a reputation as one of the top young recruiters in the game — 247Sports.com ranked him No. 6 for 2020. He was the chief recruiter on all six of Alabama’s signees.

“He is really, really good with people,” Oats says.

Hodgson was placed in foster care as a toddler after being put on a hot stove by his mother’s boyfriend. He has had to earn everything along the way. That helps him connect with people at all levels.

“There’s not much a kid is going to bring to me and be like, man, you wouldn’t understand,” Hodgson says. “I can say, man, I might.”

Hodgson’s years of forging relationships paid off in this class. The two Canadians who signed, Primo and Ambrose-Hylton, played for the same grassroots coach (Dwayne Washington) who coached Hodgson in ninth grade. He has known Darius Miles’ coach at IMG Academy for years. Sometimes you also get lucky. When Hodgson called Ellis, a Florida native, for the first time, Ellis told him how excited he was. The reason: Ellis has been an Alabama football fan his entire life.

Hodgson also works relentlessly. After a win at Ole Miss last season, he drove two hours to Memphis to take a 5:30 a.m. flight to Oakland, Calif., to watch one of Tchikou’s games. Tchikou was the last player in the class to commit, doing so on July 5. Hodgson also stays in constant contact with players he’s scouting.

“When I was coaching in AAU and junior college, I saw people recruit my guys,” he says. “There was nothing worse than when they got to the next level and called me to say that as soon as they got there, the coach didn’t message or call them anymore. They only saw him at practice. I vowed to never be that guy.”

Oats and Hodgson are in lockstep on recruiting philosophy, so if Hodgson tells Oats he needs to hop on a plane and see a kid, there’s no hesitation. The style of play helps too, as only certain players will fit it. Hodgson estimates the staff eliminates 30 to 40 percent of all potential recruits in a class just because they’re not suited to run as fast as the Crimson Tide goes.

High-level recruits often come with some baggage, handlers and entourages attached. “If there are six people I’ve got to go through when I’m recruiting someone,” Oats says, “then I’m done recruiting them.” He and his staff went to events such as the NBPA Top 100 camp and USA Basketball last year for the first time. There wasn’t much need for them to attend those when they were at Buffalo. But Oats says there really isn’t that much difference between recruiting in the MAC and in the SEC when you boil things down to their core.

“At the end of the day, it’s still about building relationships,” he says. “And building relationships is about being genuine and taking the time. You can’t build a relationship in one five-minute phone call. If you’re not willing to work and put the time in with recruiting, you’re not going to be very good at it.”

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