While Mark Sears was preparing for the NBA Draft earlier this year, he made sure to keep his eyes on what was going on with Alabama basketball .
Specifically, the roster that coach Nate Oats and his staff were building for the Crimson Tide . One that includes returnees Grant Nelson, Latrell Wrightsell Jr. and Mo Dioubate and added Houston Mallette (Pepperdine), Chris Youngblood (USF) Clifford Omoruyi (Rutgers) and Aden Holloway (Auburn) from the transfer portal.
Alabama also brings in four true freshman from its 2024 recruiting class: Derrion Reid, Aiden Sherrell, Naas Cunningham and Labaron Philon.
"When I was in the draft process, I was keeping up (with the team)," Sears said on Thursday. "I saw the roster that the coaching staff put together and I was like man, this roster can contend for a national championship and I wanted to be a part of it."
The Muscle Shoals, Alabama, native officially removed his name from the NBA Draft on May 29, announcing via social media that he would be coming back for his final season of eligibility. Sears spent his first two years at Ohio University before transferring to Alabama ahead of the 2022-23 season.
Even without Sears, Alabama would have a strong roster. His return, though, definitely boosts it. The consensus second-team All-American and first-team All-SEC member is coming off his best season yet, averaging 21.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He also set program records for most points in a season (797) and scored in double figures in 36 out of 37 games, including a double-double in the NCAA Tournament.
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With its 2024-25 roster, Alabama has the potential to win the SEC and go deep in the NCAA Tournament again, coming off the program's first Final Four appearance last season. Its roster fills some holes of areas the team may have been lacking last season, one being rim protection, where Omoruyi is expected to play a big role.
Alabama basketball began practice ahead of the 2024-25 season on Monday, leading up to its exhibition game vs. Wake Forest on Oct. 18 in Birmingham.
Anna Snyder covers high school sports and University of Alabama softball and football recruiting for The Tuscaloosa News. Reach her at asnyder@gannett.com . Follow her on X @annaesnyder2.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Mark Sears on his decision to return to Alabama basketball
