re: tOfficial Alabama Basketball Season Thread | 19-15 (10-8) | #BuckleUp

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Alabama forward Bola Olaniyan is a man.

Or is he a rebounding machine? Alabama head basketball coach Avery Johnson isn’t sure how he wants to refer to the 6-foot-7, 220-pound fifth-year transfer from Southern Illinois. Right now, Johnson’s just hoping he can call him the answer to the Crimson Tide’s rebounding problem.

“He’s been just what we thought, a rebounding a machine. A rebounding machine,” Johnson said during his news conference Friday afternoon. “We desperately need it because those of you who followed the Tide last year know that we were about 323rd or whatever in offensive rebounds, and we’re down there with a bunch of teams that didn’t make the tournament.”

Alabama was actually tied for 242nd in offensive rebounds last year, but that doesn’t change its need for improvement. Johnson believes Olaniyan, a member of the Missouri Valley Conference’s Most Improved Team last season, can be the man, or the machine, to help turn that around.

Last season Olaniyan averaged 7.8 points per game while pulling down 8.8 rebounds for the Salukis. He had a team-high six double-doubles and, perhaps most importantly to Johnson, led the MVC in offensive rebounds with three per game.

“I think Bola has a skill set,” Johnson said. “He’s an undersized center, plays some 4, and the way he gets after it in practice is pretty fun to watch. He’s a man now. He doesn’t say much, but he does a lot of talking with his physicality on the floor. I thought we needed to have him, not only for games but for competition in practice.”

Competition and depth played a big role in Johnson’s decision to bring in the big man. During the Alabama’s first official preseason practice Friday, Johnson said Olaniyan recorded five offensive rebounds while the other two big men recorded just two between them.

The head coach knows those numbers will have to get better if he wants to take the Tide to its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2012 this season.

“I thought we needed more competition in the front court,” Johnson said. “I looked at Jimmie (Taylor) and Donta (Hall) kind of battling each other all year. Shannon (Hale) was in a situation where he couldn’t practice much full speed.”

Johnson called Olaniyan one of the best “per-minute” rebounders in the country. At 6-foot-7 the senior is undersized for a typical SEC big man. However, Johnson compared Olaniyan’s game to another 6-foot-7 forward in NBA legend Dennis Rodman.

“Guys like Dennis Rodman or some of the other legends of the game, those guys weren’t necessarily the biggest guys, but they were the baddest guys,” Johnson said. “They had a will. They had a knack for the ball. There was a relentlessness in their pursuit of the basketball like you’ve seen before. ... That’s what we’ve seen from (Olaniyan).”

Rodman earned the nickname of The Worm during his playing days. Johnson hasn’t nailed down what he will call Olaniyan, but the head coach is certainly happy to have him aboard.

“We thought we hit a home run in being able to utilize that last scholarship in investing in Bola,” Johnson said. “We hope that it pays dividends for us. ... I don’t know if it’s one game or two, I think this year he’s going to help us with some games.”

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