Nate Oats assesses how Brandon Miller has handled the past week

Alabama basketball coach Nate Oats spoke to the media on Saturday about how Brandon Miller has handled a tumultuous week off the court. Miller has been at the center of massive media attention due to alleged involvement in former teammate Darius Miles’s capital murder case.

Miller has currently not been charged with anything after the investigation revealed he helped transport the gun used in the shooting of a 23-year-old mother, as the weapon belonged to Miles and Miller was allegedly not involved in the shooting. According to Miller’s lawyer, he was unaware Mile’s gun remained in his car and he never handled the weapon whatsoever. However, critics of Miller and Alabama basketball have been outspoken about his continued playing on the roster with the ongoing legal proceedings despite him not having been charged.

The freshman remains a key part of the ongoing investigation and legal battle, prompting Oats to praise his mental toughness and performance for the Crimson Tide over the past week.

Nate Oats praises Brandon Miller’s focus

While speaking with the media, Oats was asked about the ability to perform on the court Miller has shown despite the whirlwind going on outside of basketball for the freshman.

“Look, like I said after the South Carolina game — I think he’s one of the most mentally, if not the most mentally tough kid I’ve ever coached in my life,” said Oats. “I’ve been coaching for a while. While he completely understands that the situation’s tragic, he takes it very seriously as he’s been cooperating the whole time… he’s also done a great job being able to focus on practices, games and getting just this laser focus where he’s dialed in to where his feet are at.

“So you look at how he’s played, he’s shot the ball well at South Carolina. He kind of had everything going. Tonight he didn’t shoot the ball well, he’s 1-6 from three and still ends up with 24 points. So he’s got adjustments to his game, he got downhill. He was coming into huddles ‘hey they’re not going to help off me, use me as a screener. Alright I’m going to screen you,’ he’s talking to the guards… we saw it numerous times, he sets the screen [and Jahvon] Quinerly gets in the paint.

“So he’s got a high IQ and wants to help the team win. It’s really an us thing, not a me thing with him. I think when really talented players are fully bought in to doing whatever it takes for the team to win, sometimes you see weeks like they’ve had. But he’s got a special way about getting locked in to where he’s currently at.”