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Alabama freshman Amari Allen gives latest on pending NBA Draft decision

63571867_t466o7i5ncby: Blake Byler05/13/26blakebyler45

Alabama freshman Amari Allen has a major decision to make in the coming weeks. The reigning SEC All-Freshman team selection is currently participating at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, and has two weeks until the withdrawal deadline of May 27 to decide if he’s going to return to school for his sophomore season.

“Obviously first round. If it was second round, I would go back to school,” Allen told CBS Sports’ Isaac Trotter. “I definitely feel I can go back to college and be a 20 and 10 guy. Ultimately, though, I want to go to the NBA.”

Allen also spoke to Sports Illustrated’s Kevin Sweeney, saying he’d need a first-round promise to stay in the draft, and that if he were to return, Alabama would utilize him even more as an on-ball, point guard-type playmaker.

During his freshman season in 2025-26, Allen averaged 11.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game while helping the Crimson Tide win 25 games and make a fourth consecutive Sweet 16 appearance. He declared for the NBA Draft in early April while maintaining his eligibility for a potential return to college.

“Hopefully he does great,” Alabama head coach Nate Oats said about Allen’s combine participation. “He’s getting better, I watched him work out yesterday. If we get a chance to coach him for another year, great too. Whatever happens, happens. I’m gonna be super happy for him, he’s gonna be one of the best players in college basketball for us if we get him, or he’s gonna be a guy that, in one year, outdid all the rankings.”

Allen’s latest projections in mock drafts have hovered around the late-20s in the first round, including No. 27 overall in ESPN’s most recent mock draft.

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