Can Chris Fleming Fully Replace Ryan Pannone? Just a Minute

The longtime NBA assistant takes over for the former Alabama offensive guru, who helped develop the nation's highest-scoring team in back-to-back seasons.

Jan 1, 2022; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Chicago Bulls coach Chris Fleming gestures against the Washington Wizards during the second half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images | Brad Mills-Imagn Images

Welcome to BamaCentral’s "Just a Minute," a video series featuring BamaCentral's Alabama beat writers. Multiple times a week, the writers will group up to provide their take on a topic concerning the Crimson Tide or the landscape of college sports.

Watch the above video as BamaCentral staff writer Hunter De Siver discusses Alabama's basketball's new hiring of Chris Fleming.

Alabama men's basketball head coach Nate Oats and company hired Chris Fleming as the Crimson Tide's next assistant coach on Wednesday.

Fleming has lots of NBA experience, most recently as an assistant coach for the Portland Trailblazers. The 55-year-old has also been an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets (2015-2016), Brooklyn Nets (2016-2019) and Chicago Bulls (2019-2024).

Fleming joins Preston Murphy and Brian Adams as members of the Crimson Tide's 2025-26 assistant coaches. Murphy's primary responsibilities include on-court coaching, player development, opponent scouting and his renowned recruiting excellence, while Adams, who was hired prior to last season, coaches the defensive side of the ball––as he did so in the NBA for over a decade.

Fleming takes over for Ryan Pannone, who spent the last two seasons as an assistant in Tuscaloosa, primarily working with the offense. One Nate Oats assistant replaced another when Pannone finalized a deal on March 29 to be the head coach at Arkansas State and succeed Bryan Hodgson, who previously took the head coaching job at South Florida.

Pannone became the fifth Alabama assistant under Oats to leave for a head coaching job joining Hodgson, Antoine Pettway (Kennesaw State), Austin Claunch (UTSA) and Charlie Henry (Georgia Southern).

Alabama led the country in points per game during both years of Pannone's tenure. The Tide also had the most possessions per game this past season, giving it the title of the fastest-paced program in college basketball.

Alabama's offense under Pannone's leadership created success that this program had never truly seen. In 2023-24, the Crimson Tide made its first-ever Final Four appearance, and this past season, Alabama advanced to the Elite Eight round of the NCAA Tournament.

Alabama is the only school in the country to be in the Elite Eight in each of the last two years. In other words, Fleming has big shoes to fill with a revamped roster. Guard Latrell Wrightsell Jr. is the last member of the Final Four team still at Alabama and he's one of only four players from last season's roster who returned to the Crimson Tide for 2025-26.

Wrightsell and fellow returning guard Houston Mallette played very few games last year due to season-ending injuries, while forward Aiden Sherrell had the fewest minutes per contest among the entire team. Aden Holloway had the most success of the four returners last season, as he was third on the Tide in points per game with 11.4, and he was the Crimson Tide's sixth-man.

Fleming will have a lot of work to do with these four, plus four offseason transfer portal additions and three incoming freshmen. The question is how quickly can he replicate Pannone's success and can he even take it a step further due to his experience with some of the best basketball players in the world?