Roster shuffle continues for Alabama basketball: Mo Wague to transfer

Mohamed Wague will play for a fourth team in four seasons.

The Alabama forward is reportedly entering the transfer portal after helping the Tide reach the Final Four in a bench role. Wague is the sixth scholarship player to leave Tuscaloosa since April 10 and the second big (Nick Pringle).

Wague, listed at 6-foot-10, played his first season at Harcum, a junior college in Pennsylvania. He spent 2022 with West Virginia and his promising start was eventually derailed with a foot injury. Wague joined Nate Oats and co. last offseason as the roster was overhauled.

As a junior, Wague averaged 3.1 points and 2.5 rebounds across 8.3 minutes per game. Verbal Commits and Mike Rodak of 247Sports reported Wague’s latest departure.

Wague required foot surgery when a different injury was discovered last offseason upon arriving on his arrival on campus. It cost him a chunk of UA’s training program. Wague started the year as a rotational player during the non-conference slate. He scored 11 points with three assists and three steals against Purdue on Dec. 9.

Wague reaggravated his injury and it coincided with Alabama embracing its smaller, guard-oriented lineup. On Feb. 21, a home game against Florida, Wague elbowed Alex Condon in the head during a scramble for a ball. The SEC suspended Wague for one game and the forward apologized.

Wague’s playing time was further limited through the rest of SEC play. He totaled 21 minutes in the NCAA Tournament and didn’t see the court against UConn. As Alabama embraces the portal era of the sport — where rosters can have near-constant turnover — Wague’s role was unclear with three highly-rated prospects set to enroll and Grant Nelson’s likely return.

Naas Cunningham an Derrion Reid are two blue-collar wings listed at 6-foot-7 entering from high school. Aiden Sherrell is a 6-foot-10 McDonald’s All-American, along with Reid. All are rated within 247Sports top-45 prospects nationally.

Alabama will need to replace at least 40% of its four-guard starting lineup: Aaron Estrada graduated and Rylan Griffen transferred. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. announced earlier Tuesday that he’s returning. UA awaits the decisions of Nelson and Mark Sears.

Nick Alvarez is a reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @nick_a_alvarez or email him at [email protected].