Who is the Biggest Sleeper on Alabama's 2026-27 Basketball Roster? Just a Minute

My name is Hunter DeCiver, and this is Bama Central's Just a Minute. Alabama basketball is right around the corner, and a plethora of players are striving to dominate individually, but not all of them are getting the spotlight. Some of these Crimson Tide players are being slept on as potential key contributors to the 2026-27 roster. So, here are two to keep an eye on as the season looms. We'll start with Anderson Diaz. The freshman guard reclassified from the 2027 class, but this month hasn't been his friend. Diaz has seen an elbow injury before the Crimson Tide's preseason opener against Furman, and head coach Nate Oates said at the time that he'd be out for about a month. This forced him to miss the other two exhibitions, but one month from Oates' quote could make Diaz available for the Oakland game on November 9th, which is the third contest of the regular season. Oates has made it clear that the forwards and bigs are the major emphasis this season. And the fact that Diaz is one of just three players under 6'6 reflects that. In other words, true guard depth is lacking just a bit. I'd still likely take the ball up when coming off the bench. His nickname is Shifty, meaning some ankle breakers are also in the forecast. And my other choice for an Alabama sleeper is Keaton Bristow. I actually asked Alabama forward Brandon Garrison to name a sleeper on the roster in Birmingham on October 13th, and Bristow was his choice. Bristow, who only played in 10 games in 2025-26 before a season-ending injury, played a big role in the Auburn scrimmage, logging 9 points and a team-high 8 rebounds. Bristow also won the hard hat that night after collecting the most blue-collar points. And as previously stated, there's a lot of depth at forward, but Bristow has the tools to carve out a role for himself. He came back to Tuscaloosa for a reason, and his performance against the tigers was really promising for the future so that's about it thanks for listening this has been just a minute