Alabama guard Mark Sears declares for 2024 NBA Draft, maintains college eligibility
Alabama senior Mark Sears has declared for the 2024 NBA Draft, he announced on social media on Wednesday
Sears averaged 21.5 points for the Crimson Tide this season, tallying 4.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game as well while leading Alabama to its first Final Four in program history.
“I would like to think God for blessing me with an amazing gift that has allowed me to play the game that I love, basketball,” he wrote. “His blessing has provided innumerable opportunities and I am truly appreciative of God’s blessings, lessons and provisions along the way.
“After much consideration and deliberation, I have decided to declare for the 2024 NBA Draft while maintaining my college eligibility.”
That gives Sears the chance to return to college for one more season if he so chooses. That would likely be predicated on the feedback he receives from NBA teams during the pre-draft process.
In total, Sears played four seasons in college, where he spent his first two seasons at Ohio and the final two in Tuscaloosa. In 133 total games, including 114 starts, and has logged 2,149 total points, 561 rebounds and 467 assists.
As a senior, Sears logged career-high averages nearly across the board during his second season with Alabama — and only got better as the season progressed. During Alabama’s Final Four run last month, Sears averaged an elevated 24.2 points. He logged 20 or more points on 22 separate occasions, which included 30-point performances four different times.
He logged a career-high of 35 points on two separate occasions. The most recent happened this past season in a 92-86 loss to Purdue on Dec. 9. The first occurred during his final game at Ohio, a 91-86 loss to Abilene Christian in the second round of the CBI.
His efforts awarded him consensus second-team All-American and First-team All-SEC team honors following the season. He was a finalist for SEC Player of the Year as well, which was eventually awarded to Tennessee‘s Dalton Knecht.
Sears will be looking to add to its three-year tradition of Alabama having players selected in the NBA Draft. Josh Primo started the tradition in 2021, followed by JD Davidson the next season, and then Brandon Miller and Noah Clowney during last year’s NBA Draft.
The 2024 NBA Draft is set to take place over two days beginning on June 26 inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Day two will be at ESPN’s Seaport District Studios in Manhattan.