Aden Holloway Steps Up As Alabama Basketball Looks To The Future

Mark Sears transferred to Alabama and spent two seasons with the Crimson Tide (2023-2025). Sears arguably had one of the best collegiate careers under those two seasons. The Alabama native ended his career with 2,841 career points, ranking No. 19 in Division I history. He scored 690 points throughout the 2024 season, which ranks No. 4 in program history for single-season scoring. In the 2023 season, he set the program record for most points scored in a single season with 797 points and became the first Division I player in the last 31 seasons to record 795 points, 150 rebounds, 145 assists and 95 three-pointers in a single season.

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When Sears left Alabama to pursue a professional career, he left his mark after establishing himself as one of the most successful and decorated players under head coach Nate Oats.

For a player that did not start his career at Alabama, what he accomplished in two seasons is very impressive and a testament to his talent. Gaining Sears via the transfer portal was a plus for Alabama, a representation of some of the perks of utilizing the portal.

Oats and his staff has been known to be effective in the transfer portal, finding elite talent and valuable players that can combine with the talent that was already at Alabama. For the 2024 season, Alabama added former Auburn guard Aden Holloway. Coming off the bench, Holloway made his presence known and was a valuable piece to a team that made their third consecutive Sweet 16 appearance.

In Holloway's first season, he impressed as he led the Crimson Tide in three-point percentage, shooting 41.2 percent from beyond the arc. He scored 10 or more points in 24 games coming off the bench, which led the Southeastern Conference. He also scored a career-high 26 points on Dec. 29 vs. South Dakota State converting a career-high eight three-pointers, and led Alabama in three-pointers made in 11 contests.

Holloway somewhat mirrored what Sears achieved in his first season at Alabama, posing the question just how effective Holloway can be in his second season with the Crimson Tide.

On Monday, Oats was asked about comparing Holloway's second season to Sears' second season. "He's looked really good in practice for the last couple of weeks. He's playing better in pick-and-rolls with the ball in his hands," Oats said. "He's elite off the ball. He can shoot from deep. I hope he's got career highs this year. I think he's primed for it. I think he deserves it. He's playing a lot harder on the defensive side, so we can keep him on the floor longer because he's playing harder on defense. Offensively, he's just talented as a guard in the country. Sears' second year, was he second-team All-American? Shoot, if he can have a year like that, we'll all be happy around here."

The Crimson Tide will be back in action for an exhibition game at the Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham, Ala. on Oct. 16. The Crimson Tide will face Florida State in the Ballin' In Boutwell exhibition game set for 7 p.m. CT.

Holloway is expected to play a bigger role this season with the absence of Sears, and the exhibition game will be the start to his second season at Alabama.