Yale transfer Jordan Bruner headed to SEC school for senior season
Jordan Bruner is headed back to Southeast to finish his college basketball career.
The former Spring Valley standout committed to play at Alabama on Friday after announcing it on his Instagram page. Bruner spent his first four years at Yale but the Ivy League doesn’t allow for fifth-year seniors to play. He missed his sophomore year because of a torn meniscus.
Bruner is eligible to play immediately and picked Alabama over Baylor and Maryland. He also considered going into the NBA Draft.
“Thank you to the coaching staffs that took the time to recruit me. All three of the remaining schools are great situations But due to God’s vision, I will be returning to college and joining coach (Nate) Oats at Alabama with goal of winning the national championship,” Bruner said in his Instagram video.
After announcing his intentions to transfer last month, Bruner heard from more than 40 schools South Carolina expressed interest in him. Clemson didn’t pursue him this time because they didn’t have any scholarships available. Bruner’s final two choices coming out of high school were Yale and Clemson.
“The ultimate goal for me is to try to be a pro, so I feel like whatever school or whatever situation I feel like is the best situation for me to go into and help my chances of doing that, that’s probably going to be the school I go with,” Bruner told The State last month.
Bruner is the second Columbia area player going to a Power Five school as a grad transfer. Former Hammond standout Chevez Goodwin announced last month that he was headed to Southern Cal. He joins a talented Alabama recruiting class which has picked up four commitments over the last two weeks as is ranked No. 15 by 247Sports Composite rankings.
Bruner will be the second Columbia area player on the Crimson Tide roster, joining Gray Collegiate’s Juwan Gary who missed last season with an ACL injury.
The 6-foot-9 Bruner has the versatility to play inside or on the perimeter. ESPN and Stadium’s Jeff Goodman both ranked Bruner as the ninth best grad transfer on the market. Goodman talked to scouts about Bruner and this is what they said about him:
“His greatest attribute is his skill. Excellent feel for his size. That, plus his athleticism makes him a very tough matchup. Can float around at times.”
Bruner was a two-year starter for Yale and helped the Bulldogs to an NCAA tournament berth in 2019. Yale would have a good chance for a second straight tournament appearance before the season ended because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Bruner averaged 10.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks this season in earning first-team Ivy League honors. He recorded Yale’s first triple-double on Feb. 21 against Cornell with his 14-point, 11-rebound, 10-assist performance.
This story was originally published April 10, 2020 at 3:01 PM.
