Alabama’s coach, Nate Oats, says he will put an end to Brandon Miller’s pregame introduction in the light of a homicide near the university in January.
This week police alleged in courtroom testimony that Miller brought a gun to former Alabama teammate Darius Miles, who is charged with capital murder in the fatal shooting of Jamea Harris, a young mother.
The week’s details cast a different light on Miller’s regular pregame introduction, in which a Tide staffer gives him a pat down. Oats said the introduction will no longer take place.
“I think that’s something that’s been going on all year,” Oats said on Saturday, after Alabama’s victory over Arkansas. “I don’t watch our introductions. I’m not involved with them. I’m drawing up plays at that time. Regardless, it’s not appropriate. It’s been addressed, and I can assure you it definitely will not happen again the remainder of this year.”
Miller received a warmer reception at Saturday’s home game than he did earlier this week in South Carolina, where he heard chants of “lock him up” and “guilty” a day after testimony about the gun, which was allegedly used by Michael Lynn Davis, a friend of Miles, in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Harris on 15 January.
Miller hasn’t been accused of or charged with any crime – or missed any playing time. Miller’s attorney said Miller never handled the gun and that it had been left in his back seat. Police also said another Alabama player, guard Jaden Bradley, was at the scene. He started Saturday’s game and did not score.
Oats was the target of criticism after initially saying that Miller was at the “wrong spot at the wrong time”, before adding “I’m sure NBA scouts will ask [about the shooting].” He later apologized, saying in a statement that: “In no way did I intend to downplay the seriousness of this situation or the tragedy of that night”.
No players were made available and Oats declined to answer questions on the shooting case. However, he did answer a question about whether he had reached out to Harris’s family.
“Listen, to address it a little bit,” Oats said. “I apologize for my previous comments this week. We understand the severity of it all, but I’m following the administration’s lead on everything here, so we’re going to talk about the game is what they would like for me to talk about.”
Miller scored 24 points on Saturday night as Alabama beat Arkansas 86-83.
“While [Miller] completely understands the situation’s tragic and he takes it very seriously and he’s been cooperating the whole time, he’s also done a great job being able to focus on practices, games and just getting this laser focus where he’s dialed in to where his feet are at,” Oats said after the game.
