Alabama signs Oats to new deal, puts him among top-paid hoops coaches

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne announced Sunday the school has agreed to a new contract with men's basketball head coach Nate Oats.

Oats' new deal will "make him one of the top-five compensated men's basketball coaches in the country," Byrne said in a statement.

The head coach is now under contract through 2031-32, sources told ESPN's Jeff Borzello.

Oats said ahead of Alabama's Sweet 16 loss to Michigan that he had "absolutely no reason to leave" the program for North Carolina, which continues to seek a new bench boss after firing Hubert Davis on March 24. Oats is the third power conference coach to secure a contract extension amid the Tar Heels' coaching vacancy, joining Tommy Lloyd at Arizona and Vanderbilt's Mark Byington.

Though the Crimson Tide's run ended at the hands of eventual national finalist Michigan, it was the program's sixth consecutive appearance at the NCAA Tournament and the fourth time it reached the Sweet 16 during Oats' seven seasons in charge. He's also assembled another strong recruit class for 2026, including five-star wing Jaxon Richardson, the nation's No. 17-ranked prospect, per ESPN.

In 2024, the 51-year-old led Alabama to the Final Four for the first time in the men's national tournament.

Since joining the team for the 2019-20 campaign, Oats owns a combined 170-73 coaching record.