Alabama's Brandon Miller added as finalist for John R. Wooden Award after initially missing cut

There is a new name listed for the John R. Wooden Award.

Alabama men's basketball freshman Brandon Miller was added this week for the prestigious honor. The Wooden Award is given to the nation’s most outstanding college basketball player.

Miller was initially left off the list. In recent weeks, Miller has generated headlines after a police investigator testified that he had been at the scene of a fatal shooting on the Tuscaloosa Strip on Jan. 15.

Former Alabama player Darius Miles, 21, and Michael Davis, 20, who is not affiliated with the university or basketball program, are facing capital murder charges in the shooting death of 23-year-old Jamea Jonae Harris. Both men were indicted by a grand jury.

Miller has not been charged in the case. He is not facing a crime and his attorney detailed how Miller was not involved and didn’t know of the illegal activity that would occur. Miller also released a statement that described the situation as "heartbreaking."

"I never lose sight of the fact that a family lost one of their loved ones that night," Miller said ahead of the SEC Tournament. "This whole situation is just really heartbreaking. Respectfully, that's all I'm going to be able to say on that."

Miller is an emerging NBA prospect. He is averaging 19.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists on 45.3% shooting. He is set to lead Alabama against Missouri in an SEC semifinal on Saturday night, with the Crimson Tide likely hearing their name as a No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday.

Miller was also named SEC Player of the Year and is a Naismith Player of the Year semifinalist.

Other candidates for the John R. Wooden Award include: Armando Bacot (North Carolina), Antoine Davis (Detroit Mercy), Zach Edey (Purdue), Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indiana), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (UCLA), Keyontae Johnson (Kansas State), Mike Miles Jr. (TCU), Kris Murray (Iowa), Jalen Pickett (Penn State), Marcus Sasser (Houston), Drew Timme (Gonzaga), Azuolas Tubelis (Arizona), Jalen Wilson (Kansas), Isaiah Wong (Miami) and Oscar Tshiebwe (Kentucky).

Contributing: Tuscaloosa News reporter Nick Kelly