Amari Allen withdraws from NBA Draft, returns to Alabama for sophomore season

Alabama forward Amari Allen is withdrawing from the 2026 NBA Draft and will return to the Crimson Tide for the 2026-27 season, he announced on his Instagram on Wednesday.

Allen initially declared for the draft on April 19, maintaining his eligibility but testing the waters to get feedback from NBA teams about his professional future. He participated in the NBA Draft Combine in mid-May and ultimately chose to come back to school for another year, being projected as a late-first or early-second round pick in mock drafts prior to his withdrawal.

As a freshman for Alabama last season, Allen burst onto the scene as one of the surprises of the Tide’s 2025 recruiting class. He started in 24 of the team’s 32 games, being named to the SEC All-Freshman team at season’s end with averages of 11.4 points, 6.9 rebounds (team leader) and 3.1 assists while shooting 44.6% from the floor and 34.1% from 3-point range.

Now entering his sophomore season, Allen will be one of the top returning players in the conference. He’s likely to see his role evolve into more of an initiator and ball-handler, which he told reporters during the combine, a move that will mesh well with the Crimson Tide’s current roster construction.

With Allen’s withdrawal, guard Labaron Philon is the lone Alabama player expected to hear his name called during the 2026 NBA Draft, which is set for June 23-24.

Check out BamaOnLine’s roster tracker to stay up to date with all the moves Alabama is making throughout the offseason.

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