Grant Nelson will be returning to Alabama men’s basketball for one final season, he announced on Instagram on Monday.
The 2020 Devils Lake High School alumnus received national attention this past season, as he helped Alabama reach its first Final Four in program history.
“Lets run it back @alabamambb,” Nelson wrote under a video showcasing his highlights with Alabama, which culminated in “GRANT IS BACK.”
Nelson won North Dakota’s Mr. Basketball award in his senior season with Devils Lake. He went on to play three years for North Dakota State University, the last of which he averaged 17.9 points per game in. His performance put him on the map in NBA draft conversations. He then transferred to Alabama.
His career with the Tide got off to a quick start. His stats faded towards the end of the season, but he still put up 11.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game overall.
He had multiple highlight plays throughout March Madness, and shined the most during the Tide’s Elite Eight win over No. 1 seed North Carolina. He put up 24 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks, becoming the first player with at least 20, 12 and four since Kevin Love for UCLA in 2008.
Nelson could have declared for the NBA draft. As recently as earlier on Monday, basketball analysts were still uncertain which route he would choose. Instead, he’ll be using his final year of college eligibility to play his second season with Alabama and fifth collegiate season overall.
Nelson is the first former North Dakota high school basketball player to play in a Division I Final Four since 1998 Valley City alu Jeff Boschee, who played for Kansas in the 2002 Final Four.
One of Nelson’s brothers, Joel, recently helped the current Devils Lake team end a 99-year state title drought. Joel will be a senior on the Firebirds next season.
