A former Alabama basketball starter is heading home after leaving the Crimson Tide. Jarin Stevenson, who entered the transfer portal after the 2024-25 season, has committed to North Carolina according to multiple reports, first by ESPN.
Stevenson is a native of Chapel Hill, and his mother played basketball at UNC. Before Alabama faced the Tar Heels in the Sweet 16 following the 2023-24 season, he told reporters that North Carolina was the first school to offer him out of high school.
“I love the school for sure,” Stevenson said. “Carolina is a great school. Just getting to know the players, the coaches, see the facilities, it’s a great school for sure. It was a hard decision (to come to Alabama.”
Stevenson played his high school basketball at Seaforth in Pittsboro N.C., where he became a four-star prospect according to 247Sports. He spent two seasons with Alabama.
The 6-foot-11, 215-pound forward was a full-time starter for the Crimson Tide. He averaged 5.4 points and 3.4 rebounds this season for UA, making 42.9% of his field goal attempts.
Before Alabama fell to Duke in its Elite Eight matchup, Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats spoke of Stevenson’s potential, despite some of his struggles throughout the season.
“We just need to keep pumping him full of confidence,” Oats said. “He’s a kid that, he doesn’t even know how good he is. When you talk to him, he has no idea. I mean, I think he should be a long-time NBA player. We’ve just got to realize he’s young and pump him full of confidence and get him going because he could be an X-factor for us for sure.”
Stevenson entered the transfer portal after Alabama lost to Duke. He was one of four players the Crimson Tide lost to the portal so far, along with Naas Cunningham, Mo Dioubate and Derrion Reid.
