Welcome to my team preview series for 2024-25. Each day between now and the start of the college basketball season, I will preview one team or conference, both on Instagram (@collegehoopsoutlet) and through an article here. The preview will go in-depth on the roster build of the team, my expectations for their upcoming season, and the state of the program under their current head coach.
Alabama (Projected: 1st in SEC)
Nate Oats has had tremendous success through his first five seasons at Alabama, and the Crimson Tide are showing no signs of stopping. This past spring, the Crimson Tide reached their first Final Four and return five key players from that run. The 2024-25 squad should be favorites to win the SEC and sit inside the top five in the national polls all year long.
Mark Sears (22 ppg, 4 rpg, 4 apg) headlines the returners for Alabama, a talented three-level scorer and passer that will contend for the Wooden award. Sears shot 50.8% from the field and 43.6% from three last season, heading the attack of the #2 offense in the country for the Crimson Tide. Next to Sears in the backcourt is returning guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (9 ppg). Wrightsell adds even better shooting to the Crimson Tide attack, hitting 44.7% of his three-point shot last season. Now heading into his second year, don’t be surprised to see Wrightsell jump up to 13 or 14 ppg.
In the frontcourt, Alabama returns fifth-year senior Grant Nelson (12 ppg, 6 rpg) and a pair of blossoming sophomores in Jarin Stevenson (5 ppg) and Mouhamed Dioubate (3 ppg). Nelson wasn’t quite the same shooter as his counterparts were last season, but his change of pace at the four was a great fit for the Crimson Tide, and he came up big in Alabama’s Sweet 16 matchup with UNC. Stevenson is another guy who came up big last March, scoring a career-high 19 in the Elite Eight win over Clemson. Finishing his freshman campaign strong, I’ve got confidence that Stevenson can take a step up in his game and play an even bigger role in the Alabama frontcourt. Dioubate saw limited time as a freshman, and as a non-factor from three, I find it hard to believe he’ll see big minutes again as a sophomore.
The Crimson Tide lost six guys from their program-first Final Four run, headlined by the exit of senior guard Aaron Estrada (13 ppg, 5 rpg, 5 apg). Underclassmen Rylan Griffen (11 ppg) and Davin Cosby Jr. (4 ppg) left via the transfer portal in the backcourt. In the frontcourt, Nick Pringle (7 ppg, 5 rpg), Sam Walters (5 ppg), and Mohamed Wague (3 ppg) all found new homes via the transfer portal.
Nate Oats did terrific work in the transfer portal, filling team needs, especially down low where he grabbed one of the best rim protectors in the country in Rutgers transfer Cliff Omoruyi (10 ppg, 8 rpg at Rutgers). Omoruyi wasn’t quite as effective on the offensive end in his senior year compared to his junior year, but his blocks jumped up from 2.1 bpg to 2.9 bpg in less minutes per game. His rim protection will be the most important part of his addition to the roster, but his presence should also be known offensively.
Three transfers came into the backcourt for the Crimson Tide, with former in-state rival Aden Holloway (7 ppg at Auburn) and experienced mid-major scorers Chris Youngblood (15 ppg at South Florida) and Houston Mallette (15 ppg at Pepperdine) into the program. Holloway had an inefficient freshman season at Auburn, but now with a year of SEC competition under his belt, I think he can become a solid piece off the bench for his former rivals Alabama. Youngblood has averaged double digits in scoring all four years of his career thus far (3 at Kennesaw State, 1 at USF), and I believe that continues in Tuscaloosa. Youngblood should start alongside Sears and Wrightsell in the backcourt, another talented guard with lots of experience and terrific shooting ability (41.6% 3P). Mallette shot 41.5% from three last season at Pepperdine, and he’ll be another shooting option as he links back up with former teammate Latrell Wrightsell Jr.
Nate Oats also did plenty of work on the recruiting trails, grabbing four top 50 recruits in the class of 2024. Derrion Reid (4*, NAT 16) is the highest rated recruit of the group, and should have an instant impact in the rotation at either of the forward spots. Reid, like most players on the Alabama roster, can shoot it well from three, and by March I wouldn’t be surprised if we see him inserted into the starting lineup. Aidan Sherell (4*, NAT 23) should play a role in the frontcourt rotation for the Crimson Tide, a guy who can fill in for Cliff Omoruyi off the bench and keep some rim protection on the court. Labaron Philon (4*, NAT 34) has seen high praise from Coach Oats in the offseason, and his involvement in the guard rotation should be something to monitor. Naas Cunningham (4*, NAT 47) has the potential to find a role as a freshman, maybe already being the best athlete on this Alabama roster, but he will need to find more consistency in his play to grab a role in this stacked rotation. Expect Reid, Sherrell, and Philon to all be heavily in the mix by March, and let it be known that this could very well be the deepest roster in the country.
Heading into year six in Tuscaloosa, Nate Oats looks to be staying out for the long run, turning down interest from Kentucky, Michigan, and Louisville in the offseason. Fresh off a Final Four run, I truly believe this team has a great chance to go even further. The team needed to shore up on the defensive side of things, and I think the addition of Cliff Omoruyi begins to plug that hole as one of the best rim protectors in the country.
With Mark Sears in the backcourt, the potential to win the national title will be there. Sears will be among the best players in the country, and in a high prolific offense like Alabama’s, he could put up the stats to become the first player since Jalen Brunson (2018) to win the national championship and the Wooden Award. I’ve talked about the impact Cliff Omoruyi will have for this team defensively, and he’s probably a good candidate to be listed as the X-factor for Alabama. I wanted to highlight Latrell Wrightsell Jr. as my X-factor though, with the fifth-year senior preparing for his second season in Tuscaloosa. We’ve seen plenty of players take leaps in year two at a new school, and I think Wrightsell could be the next one to do so, becoming the right-hand man for Mark Sears in the backcourt.
The SEC is second to only the Big 12 as far as conferences rank this season in my eyes. I’ve got the Crimson Tide projected to win the conference, though it won’t be easy with Auburn, Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Florida all with talented rosters. Nate Oats has proven himself as a winner and now has a Final Four appearance to show off. Don’t be surprised if the Crimson Tide are still alive once again in April this upcoming spring.