What Mark Sears must do to be Bama Hoops’ GOAT

Significance of team success in 2024-25

Mark Sears is statistically on track to be Alabama’s best player of all time, but team success remains a very important factor in that conversation. He has already had a ton of it, having been a part of the best regular season in school history as well as its first Final Four in his two seasons on campus. With those milestones already in his back pocket, Sears’ legacy will largely be determined by what the team does in his final season.

Preseason expectations for Alabama Basketball are as high as they’ve ever been, almost bordering on unrealistic in some cases, and Sears is the undisputed leader. If this team lives up to the hype, proving itself to be a powerhouse throughout the regular season before making another deep tournament run, Sears’ GOAT status will be all but cemented. Should the Tide make it back to the Final Four or even win a national championship, documentary crews will be falling over themselves to get to Mark Sears and tell the story of his career arc. 

Still, such high expectations can be a heavy burden to carry. If this 2024-25 team is a disappointment in any way, it will be a sour note on the end of an illustrious career for Sears. Though the balance and depth that this roster possesses makes such a falloff seem unlikely, almost anything is possible in college sports. 

Mark Sears has already enjoyed a storybook college basketball career, going from a 3-star recruit with no high major offers to a bona fide All-American leading his home state school to its first Final Four. In doing so, he has already proven all of his doubters wrong. As he prepares for the final chapter of his college career, Sears has his best supporting cast yet and looks to solidify his legacy as a Crimson Tide legend.