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Alabama basketball won’t be without its leading scorer next season. Kira Lewis Jr. announced Monday that he decided to return for his sophomore season after previously inserting his name into the NCAA transfer portal.
Lewis, who turned 18 years old last week, was the second-youngest player in Division I basketball last season. The 6-foot-3, 167-pound point guard was named to the SEC All-Freshman team last season after leading Alabama in scoring (13.6 points per game), assists (2.9 per game) and minutes (31.6 per game). He shot 43.3 percent from the floor and 35.8 percent from beyond the arc.
Earlier in the day, newly-hired head coach Nate Oats spoke on JOX FM’s 3 Man Front, stating he felt good about Lewis returning to Alabama next season.
“I feel really good about it,” Oats said. “It’s just one of those deals where you don’t want to push and pressure a kid like that. But I mean, the kid’s a projected first-round pick. He just had his birthday, just turned 18. I’ve got an agent, and went through and looked. The average age of an NBA draft pick right now is 19.6 years old, I believe, and it’s getting lower and lower. The last five years it’s dropping further and further … He’s right where he needs to be. So, if he had to go somewhere and sit out, that doesn’t really help him achieve the goal he’s trying to get to. And our system is going to fit him great.
“The last two years we were top five in the country in scoring. We were No. 3 in pace of play on offense. The floor’s going to be spread and we’re going to play fast, and he’s as fast as you get playing the point. So, our system’s kind of tailor-made for him. We’re going to continue to develop a relationship with him and his family, and they’re going to be comfortable.”
Sophomore guard John Petty Jr. removed his name from the NCAA transfer database last week. Redshirt juniors Dazon Ingram and Daniel Giddens are still both listed in the transfer portal. Both players would be eligible to play immediately at a school of their choice as graduate transfers.
