Nate Oats discusses Alabama's re-recruitment of guard Jaden Shackelford

A day after Alabama basketball sent two players to the NBA, head coach Nate Oats opened up about one of the stars the Crimson Tide was able to keep in Tuscaloosa, Ala. this offseason.

Earlier this month junior guard Jaden Shackelford announced his return to Alabama after testing the NBA Draft waters and later entering his name in the NCAA transfer portal. During a Zoom call with reporters Friday morning, Oats discussed what went into his leading scorer’s decision to remain with the program.

“Him going in the portal, I think that was one of those deals where he and his family really wanted to make sure he was in the best situation for him to get to where he wants to get to,” Oats said. “Was it at Alabama? Was there something else? I think they needed to have peace of mind that staying at Alabama was in fact the best situation for him to achieve his goals.”

Shackelford was an instrumental piece in Alabama’s SEC title-winning season last year. On top of leading the Tide with 14.0 points per game, the 6-foot-3, 200-pound guard averaged 3.8 rebounds while shooting 41% from the floor and 34.2% from beyond the arc. Before deciding to stick with Alabama, Shackelford also considered Ohio State, Oklahoma and Texas Tech.

Friday, Oats said he didn’t shy away from re-recruiting Shackelford, stating that he and his staff made multiple trips to the Hesperia, Calif. native’s home this summer. Ultimately, that hard work paid off as the Tide was able to convince the star guard to stay. Alabama joins Michigan and UCLA as the only three high-major basketball programs to not lose a player to the transfer portal this offseason.

“I think that speaks to what we are doing,” Oats said. “And if he took some calls from some other schools and looked at them and realized that this is the best spot, maybe that says a lot. He did look at some options, and we knew that he did. I made three trips to California, so we did recruit him back here hard. I think that we have the best system for him. I think he’s comfortable here. I think his teammates love him. I think he wanted to be here. I just think he needed to be assured that this is the best spot for him.”

Alabama had two players selected in Thursday night’s NBA Draft as Joshua Primo went No. 12 overall to the San Antonio Spurs while Herbert Jones went No. 35 overall to the New Orleans Pelicans. During the draft, Shackelford tweeted that he was motivated to join his former teammates in the near future.

Friday, Oats discussed Shackelford’s draft process stating that the guard took part in a workout and received feedback from NBA teams. The head coach also spoke with several NBA clubs about what his guard needs to do to improve over the next year.

As for what is in store this season, Oats said there will be no ill will toward Shackelford while also stating that the junior will still have to prove himself on what figures to be one of the deepest rosters in the nation.

“There’s no promises,” Oats said. “You’ve got to come in here and you’ve got to play. You’ve got to do the work you’re supposed to. You’ve got to get better at the stuff they said you’ve got to get better at. Hopefully after another year in our system, he’s able to prove that he’s good enough to play in that league and he can get himself there.”

While Thursday night offered up plenty of excitement for Primo and Jones, Alabama’s third draft hopeful didn’t hear his name called. Although, while John Petty Jr. might not have been selected during this year’s NBA Draft, the sharpshooting guard will still get an opportunity to pursue a professional career in the league moving forward.

Friday, Oats revealed that Petty has agreed to play for the Detroit Pistons’ summer league team as he looks to earn a two-way deal.

This has been a turbulent offseason for the Huntsville, Ala. native. After having his draft process initially hindered by a knee injury, Petty also experienced the passing of his grandmother. Already viewed as a fringe draft pick, the time away from the court prevented the 6-foot-5, 184-pound guard from playing his way into becoming a pick.

“He needed to have some really good workouts to play his way into getting drafted,” Oats said. “Herb ended up early second (round) and we thought Petty could end up anywhere from early second to mid-second, but you have to play well in the Combine. He wasn’t able to play well in that. You have to be able to play well in some workouts and, due to the injury, he just wasn’t able to do well.”

Petty’s exclusion in Thursday night’s draft isn’t necessarily the worst scenario. Second-round picks are not guaranteed contracts in the NBA, so entering the league as a free agent allowed the former Alabama guard to select his next destination. According to Oats, the Pistons have been scouting Petty for a while now.

“I know a couple of those scouts and I know some people in the front office after I spent 11 years in Detroit,” Oats said. “I talked to a couple of them this week and they were high on him last summer when he put his name in and they’re high on him.”

The summer league will take place in Las Vegas from Aug. 8-17.