If a strong second half of the season and a run to the NIT title game was a rousing success for rebuilding Alabama this past March, the Crimson Tide should know that's probably the last time expectations will be so low for a while.
Not only does Alabama return the top three players from a 25-win team, it also is adding one of the most coveted in-state recruits in recent history.
Trevor Lacey, the Class of 2011's top unsigned shooting guard, signed with Alabama on Wednesday, selecting the Tide over a long list of suitors including Kansas and Kentucky. The 6-foot-3 Huntsville native joins highly touted prospects Levi Randolph, Rodney Cooper, Nick Jacobs and Moussa Gueye in an Alabama recruiting class Rivals.com already rated 12th-best in the nation before his signing.
"Alabama just felt like home to me," Lacey said at his press conference. "I made my decision about three days ago. I was just more comfortable with Coach Grant and his staff and am excited about the things they are doing in Tuscaloosa."
The signing of Lacey is especially critical for Alabama because the Tide's greatest weakness last season was sub-30 percent 3-point shooting. Lacey consistently showed the ability at the high school level to knock down deep 3-pointers, to sink mid-range shots off the dribble and to make contested jump shots with a hand in his face.
One of the reasons that Lacey was such a coveted recruit the past few weeks was certainly because he waited long enough to sign that top programs were desperate for a guard to fill the hole in next season's roster. Nonetheless, it's significant for Alabama coach Anthony Grant that he retained a top in-state recruit rather than letting him leave for a program with greater pedigree.
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