Alabama Basketball Meet the New Guys: London Jemison — Perhaps the most intriguing Freshman signee

London Jemison
Forward, 6’8” (200)
ESPN 100 (33), 4-Star No. 6 PF

Nate Oats has signed many tweener types in his Alabama career, guys with a lot of flexibility that just don’t quite fit into a neat box. But perhaps none exemplifies that quite like incoming Forward London Jemison.

That’s really the best way to label him too: “Forward.” Jemison has the frame and bulk and strength of a power forward, with the relatively smaller stature of a small forward; a defensive game like a Four, with the shooting touch of a Three. He gets after the ball, he attacks the rim, he swats shots like he was born to the post, and he launches them from the perimeter like a shooting guard. He is a true three-and-D player that is, to use Draft-speak, “projectable.”

Jemison was the No. 1 player in Connecticut, and like Noah Williamson attended the prestigious Thomas More Academy. While there, he was an all-around star, displaying a lot of that versatility that defines his game. As a High School Naismith POTY nominee, Jemison average 14.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 blocks. That’s a very impressive stat line for a spot on the floor where the offense usually does not originate. But, to top it off, he also was the Region’s defensive player of the year, while also leading Thomas More in three point attempts per night (almost six).

Nothing about that sentence should make sense at the PF position. But, somehow, he makes it work. Did we mention he also earned academic scholarships to Brown and Yale? Because that happened too (though he was of course courted by the likes of Kansas and Alabama).

And perhaps the most intriguing part of his game is how seamlessly London blends in as a role-player. Jemison is not the stud on the court, but he works within the offense and is remarkably productive in that framework. He’ll be one of those player that quietly posts 12/6 a night, and who’s sum box score may never truly be as good as the individual constituent parts of his game.

He has a quick first step and is a decent ball-handler for a big man. He already excels at the baseline-and-three cut screens. And he is most comfortable as a catch-and-release shooter, working the two-man screen-and-roll, and finishing at the rim. ‘Bama fans will also be pleased to know that he has good floor vision, swings the ball to the open man, and is very careful with the ball even as he makes cross-court skip passes.

Jemison is a native product of a mid-tempo five-out offense, and it shows.

Usually, we find some glaring problems with a young player’s game. But it’s hard to really fault Jemison in any one particular area. He’s not a developmental player at all. He does things well now. And, as he gets older and more experienced, he’ll only improve at them. I suppose if there was any knock on his game it’s that he’s a Bristow-sort of guy. He’s not yet learned to adapt his game to a growing body. He is a very good defender, but he’s not a particularly physical one. He still plays as a shooter, when his frame can dictate that he play even larger than he does.

But that’s just a matter of time and maturation, not a skill issue.

Of the ‘Bama freshmen who I think is most court-ready as of today, London Jemison may be it. He’s just so smooth, and is already intimately familiar with the concepts within the Nate Oats playbook. The learning curve, and adjusting to physicality, will always be discrete stages in a freshman’s progression, but it’s hard to not like what Jemison brings to the court.

Welcome to Tuscaloosa, London

Roll Tide