GLENDALE, Ariz. โ Alabama basketball's season in the NCAA Tournament ended with a loss to UConn in the Final Four. It was a historic postseason, with the team advancing to the Final Four for the first time in program history, but attention will soon turn to the 2024-25 season.
What will the 2024-25 Alabama basketball roster look like? Who will be back? Who will leave?
In the era of the transfer portal, change is inevitable. Now, it's not like eight of the 13 scholarship students will leave the team like they did a season ago, but there will be some who do. Actually there should be. That's certainly true from a numbers standpoint, with a scholarship cap of 13.
Who won't return, who will join Alabama and who might leave as coach Nate Oats prepares to build his roster for his sixth season at Alabama? Let's take a look.
Provocation:The best trash talk I heard as Alabama basketball entered the Final Four
Follow the madness: NCAA Tournament brackets, scores, schedules, teams, and more.
Nate Oates:Inside Nate Oats' long and winding journey to the Final Four.
Nick Saban Memorial Book:Relive Nick Saban's epic career with this special book. Click here to pre-order.
Who won't be coming back to Alabama basketball?
Start with confidence. The Crimson Tide will need to replace at least one starter, as Aaron Estrada has exhausted his eligibility. The guard was a valuable one-year addition for Alabama after spending his playing days from St. Peter's to Oregon State, Hofstra and now Alabama.
Otherwise, the entire roster remains non-Estrada eligible.
Who will be joining the Alabama basketball team?
The Crimson Tide will acquire five-star forward Derion Reed, five-star center Aiden Sherrell and four-star forward Nurse Cunningham. This means that three of the 13 roster spots have been acquired.
And it turns out that Alabama will transfer at least one player, Pepperdine guard Houston Mallet. He committed just before the NCAA Tournament and is thought to be able to play a similar role to Estrada.
Number of scholarships: 4/13 I received the scholarship.
Possible transfer portal addition to Alabama basketball team
There's still a lot left in this portal, but there's no doubt the Crimson Tide will add at least one player, and likely more.
Lacking a true rim protector last season, Alabama's defense was limited for much of the season. The Crimson Tide will be added via portal this cycle.
Alabama is also likely to add at least one more guard. There could be more, but that would depend on who stays on the current roster and who leaves.
For now, let's run it as if Alabama adds a rim protector and at least one transfer player. You can now receive two more scholarships.
Number of scholarships: 6/13
Who will return to Alabama basketball in 2024-25?
For this exercise, the Crimson Tide has seven scholarships remaining and 11 players remaining eligible on the current roster.
That means at least four players will have to move on, whether they go to the draft, go to another team or finish college basketball. Group eligible to remain next season: Mark Sears, Latrell Lightsell Jr., Grant Nelson, Rylan Griffen, Jalin Stevenson, Sam Walters, Moe Diubatte, Nick Pringle, Moe Wagg. , Davin Cosby Jr., Chris Parker.
The top seven, in order of minutes played, are Sears, Griffen, Nelson, Wrightsell, Pringle, Stevenson, and Walters. Of course, it's not that simple. However, of the remaining 11, these players received the most playing time in 2023-2024.
Wagg, Diobate and Cosby are in order of most minutes remaining, but Parker is redshirting.
If a player declares to participate in the draft, a spot becomes available. If either player decides to transfer, there will be even more opportunities. With 11 players left he certainly won't be crowded enough to take advantage of his 7 open scholarships, but until further notice the operation will operate as if 11 players are competing for his 7. let's.
Number of scholarships: 13/13
Will Mark Sears stay for another season?
Sears has a decision to make.
Although he is a senior, he is still eligible to play if he wishes. He spent two seasons at Ohio and two seasons at Alabama. Sears had a solid first season at Alabama in 2022-23, but became a driving force for the team in 2023-24, earning him unanimous second-team All-America honors. He then took his defense and leadership to the next level in the NCAA Tournament, helping the Crimson lead his Tide to the Final Four.
His decision is essentially: Does he want to stick around for another season, increase his draft stock and headline a roster that could win the SEC and make it to the top of the NCAA Tournament again? Or does he feel he won't improve much after one more season of college basketball and is ready to take on the next level now?
If he were to declare for the NBA Draft and be selected, he would probably be a second round pick at best at this point. However, he could potentially get a two-way contract. That's probably better than what he could get in the NIL by staying one more season at Alabama. However, it is not certain whether he will be drafted or receive a two-way contract.
Additionally, while Sears' defense improved significantly in the NCAA Tournament, a team that drafts a guard in the second round or signs a two-way contract may want someone to consistently be a better guard throughout the season. Another season in which he works on improving his defense to match his strong offensive game could boost his draft stock.
But if he doesn't think there's much to gain by staying in college basketball for another season, it might make sense for him to declare. To some degree, a player is ultimately who he is, and he probably wouldn't change all that much if he came back for another season. The same may be true for Sears, who already has four seasons' worth of tape.
Or maybe not. Perhaps Sears wants to play one more year at Alabama, where he has established himself as a legend. And with one more season, he can do his best to increase his draft stock as much as possible.
This will be tracked during the offseason to see what Sears ultimately decides.
What about Grant Nelson?
He tested the draft waters a year ago and ultimately decided to transfer from North Dakota State to Alabama. After a year, Nelson may graduate from school and pursue his professional career. Or maybe he thinks a second season in the Crimson Tide's system is worth it. Given his characteristics, that could very well turn him into a first-round pick. He's exactly the type of big Alabama wants in its system, but his first season in Tuscaloosa was inconsistent. Games against UNC and UConn showed his potential, but those games alone may not be enough to boost his draft stock the way he did in seasons where he performed more. His future decisions will also be interesting to watch.
After losing to UW in the Final Four, Nelson said of his next decision.
โIf I were to go back to college, I hope it would be the University of Alabama,โ Nelson told the Tuscaloosa News. “I'm definitely going to talk to my agent, talk to my coach and figure out what's best for me. Hopefully, I can go into the draft process and get drafted this year. But if all else fails… If we do, hopefully Alabama will come back.โ
Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for the Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, covering Alabama football and men's basketball. Contact us at nkelly@gannett.com or follow us @_Nick Kelly on the social media app X, formerly known as Twitter..