University of Pittsburgh Athletics
McDonald’s All-American Jalil Bethea To Transfer To Pitt
5/20/2026 8:45:00 AM | Men's Basketball
PITTSBURGH – Jalil Bethea, a 6-foot-5 junior guard from Philadelphia, will transfer from Alabama to the Pitt men's basketball program for the 2026-27 season. A former consensus five-star recruit and 2024 McDonald's All-American, Bethea brings size, athleticism and a high-level offensive skill set to the Panthers' backcourt. He will have two years of eligibility remaining.
ABOUT THE 2026-27 ROSTER
Macari Moore To Return To Pitt For 2026-27 Season
Colin Hawkins To Join Pitt Men's Basketball Program
Dominique Diamonde To Transfer To Pitt
Big South Scoring And Assists Leader A'lahn Sumler To Transfer To Pitt
North Carolina Transfer Jonathan Powell To Join Pitt
Ricardo Greer, Ronald Ramón Return To Pitt On Coaching Staff
2026-27 Men's Basketball Roster
In 2025-26, Bethea appeared in 26 games for an Alabama team that advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, averaging 3.9 points, 1.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game while shooting 80.7 percent (25-of-31) from the free-throw line. He missed the month of November while recovering from offseason foot surgery and posted a career-high 21 points against UTSA on Dec. 7 in his first game of extended minutes.
Bethea began his collegiate career at Miami (Fla.) in 2024-25, where he appeared in 31 games with 16 starts as a freshman and averaged 7.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game in 18.9 minutes of action while shooting 36.8 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from three-point range.
A native of Philadelphia, Bethea attended Archbishop Wood Catholic High School, where he was rated the No. 7 overall prospect in the 2024 class, the No. 3 shooting guard nationally and the No. 1 player in the state of Pennsylvania by 247Sports. He scored a school-record 1,693 points at Archbishop Wood, averaging 22.7 points, six rebounds and five assists per game as a senior. Bethea was named a McDonald's All-American on Team East and also won the 2024 McDonald's Slam Dunk Contest and the Powerade JamFest Dunk Contest at the Final Four.
