Jarin Stevenson grins.

And not just a crack; we're talking about an ear-to-ear, can't-hide-the-excitement kind of grin. It's been about a year since the South Korea men's national basketball team first asked Alabama basketball's freshman forward to join the team, but from his smile, you'd think the invitation just hit the mailbox yesterday.

"I'm excited for that, to represent. My dad played over there, so to represent that would be special," Stevenson said. "Staying over there and knowing people there, it's swaying me to want to play."

PREDICTIONS: Alabama basketball SEC Tournament prediction: How far will the Tide go?

SECT ON TAP: SEC Basketball Tournament bracket: Full TV schedule, scores, results for 2024 championship

It's a good thing he doesn't need to hide his intentions over a card table, because he's got no poker face for this. His father, Jarod, is half-Korean, took the Korean name Moon Tae-jong while playing professionally there, and played for the men's national team himself. As such, Jarin would be carrying on something of a family tradition by accepting the invitation, which he still hasn't formally done, but that's just a formality. He doesn't believe the 2024 Summer Olympic Games will be in the cards when he does, but he's hopeful for 2028.

Stevenson (6-foot-11, 210 pounds) still feels strongly connected to South Korea, having lived in Seoul for six years until his father finished his pro career. He attended two international schools, Seoul Foreign School and Dwight School, with classmates from across the globe — Russians, Germans, Americans, and of course, South Koreans. English was taught to all, so communication was never a problem either on or off the court. But Stevenson nevertheless became very familiar with South Korean culture.

"There's more respect for elders over there," he said. "They let them get on buses first, different things like that. People tend to them more, but here things are more individualistic."

Stevenson took to the food as well; Korean BBQ was a favorite, as well as kimbap, a rice and seaweed roll. Although he never got fluent in the language, he learned enough words to get by, and was more proficient reading Korean than speaking it. But while Stevenson and South Korean culture made for a good pairing, his basketball competition couldn't really keep up with a kid who was already 6-foot-5 by the time he returned to the U.S. He played junior varsity basketball as a fifth grader, and varsity in the sixth and seventh grades before coming back to the states.

At Alabama, competition hasn't been a problem.

"You've got bigger, stronger guys, and guys who've been in it for four years," Stevenson said. "It's tough trying to hold your ground in the post, fight for rebounds, all that."

Stevenson's immediate focus is on competing in his first NCAA Tournament this week, which will be Alabama's fourth year in a row to make the 68-team field. He's averaged 17 minutes, 5.2 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, mostly coming off the bench as one of coach Nate Oats' first substitutions. Defense and accuracy on 3-pointers are two areas the freshman can improve as his first college season comes to a close.

Exactly when the door to the South Korean National Team will open remains to be seen. But Stevenson can't hide his anticipation for it.

"I am leaning that way," he said.

And hard.

Tuscaloosa News columnist Chase Goodbread is also the weekly co-host of Crimson Cover TV on WVUA-23. Reach him at cgoodbread@gannett.com. Follow on Twitter @chasegoodbread.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama basketball's Jarin Stevenson awaits the chance of a lifetime