Alabama's Nate Oats: Brandon Miller's Pat-Down Intro 'Not Appropriate,' Will Stop

Alabama head men's basketball coach Nate Oats said Saturday that star forward Brandon Miller will cease his pat-down introduction ahead of games moving forward.

Ryan Hennessy of WVTM 13 captured the gesture on video before Alabama's 86-83 home win over Arkansas on Saturday, and Matt Norlander of CBS Sports noted that Miller has been doing it all season:

Per Mike Rodak of AL.com, Oats said he believed the pat-down intro had "been going on all year," but added: "Regardless it's not appropriate. It's been addressed. ... I can assure you it will not happen again for the remainder of the year."

According to ESPN, Tuscaloosa police detective Branden Culpepper testified this week that Miller delivered a handgun to former Crimson Tide teammate Darius Miles that Miles then used in the murder of 23-year-old Jamea Jonae Harris in January.

Culpepper added that Miles texted Miller to bring him a gun, and Miles allegedly told Michael Lynn Davis where the gun was located in Miller's car.

Miles admitted to providing the gun to Davis but said Davis was the one who shot Harris. Both Miles and Davis are facing capital murder charges.

Miller has not been charged with any crimes for his alleged role in providing the murder weapon, and Tuscaloosa chief deputy district attorney Paula Whitley told AL.com's Carol Robinson "there's nothing we could charge [Miller] with."

The University of Alabama has permitted Miller to continue playing, and Oats defended the decision Friday, telling reporters:

"We've been taking it very seriously from Day 1. The first minute that I got the information, I called [AD] Greg [Byrne] and we talked about it and the severity of it. Greg, I thought, did a great job addressing those comments on Wednesday, and I really don't have much to add to it.

"We feel like we've done the right thing in this case. So I'm going to leave it at that with Greg's comments."

Miller is a 6'9" freshman who has been the best player for a Crimson Tide team that is ranked No. 2 in the nation with a 25-4 record this season.

The Antioch, Tennessee, native leads Bama with 19.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, to go along with 3.1 three-pointers made, 1.9 assists, 0.9 blocks and 0.9 steals per contest.

Miller is making 46.6 percent from the field and 43.1 percent from beyond the arc as well, and he is among the leading candidates to be named national player of the year.

Alabama's only remaining regular-season games are March 1 against Auburn and March 4 against Texas A&M, after which the Tide will play in the SEC tournament and then the NCAA tournament, where they are currently in line to be a No. 1 seed.