Alabama women’s basketball has higher expectations than usual this season, as the team is ranked in the preseason AP Top 25 for the first time in 25 years. Here is a look at the three freshmen who will be joining the team for the 2024-25 season.
Eris Lester, guard
Lester was the highest-ranked recruit the team brought in this past offseason. According to Prospects Nation, she was a 4-star recruit and the 57th-ranked overall player.
Her first three seasons were spent at Orange Park High School, where she was a member of the school’s 1,000-point club and averaged over 20 points per game in her sophomore and junior seasons. This earned her All-Clay County first team honors in both seasons. She then finished her high school career at Montverde Academy.
Lester called her decision to commit to Alabama “super easy.” She has turned heads so far, and forward Aaliyah Nye raved about her athletic ability during SEC media day.
“Eris’s athletic ability is out of this world,” Nye said, citing her ability to touch the rim and dunk.
Chloe Spreen, guard
The 4-star recruit comes to the Crimson Tide after an accomplished career at Bedford North Lawrence High School in Indiana, where in 2024 she was named Miss Indiana, an award given to the best women’s basketball player in the state.
Spreen was named to the IHSAA All-State first team for three consecutive years — in 2021, 2022 and 2023 — and was also named a MaxPreps Girls Basketball Junior All-American.
She committed to Alabama in April 2023 and officially signed with the team six months later. Head coach Kristy Curry raved about the opportunity to have a player like Spreen on the team.
“Chloe is one of the best guards in the country,” Curry said. “She will fit right into our offensive system and will buy into the way we want to defend.”
Leah Brooks, forward
Brooks joins the team after an acclaimed career at Hazel Green High School in Alabama, where she won a state championship all four years.
The championship seasons brought Brooks some individual accolades: she received second-team All-State honors in 2022, was named the ASWA 6A Player of the Year in 2023 and earned first-team All-State honors that same year. She capped off her high school career by being named the 2024 AHSAA 6A State Championship MVP with 13 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots.
Brooks committed to the Crimson Tide after her sophomore year and signed in November 2023. The decision to come to Alabama was easy for Brooks, who didn’t envision playing basketball anywhere else.
“I chose Alabama because it felt like a second home,” Brooks said. “I felt very welcomed here and the place has a very good environment.”
Aspirations are high for the No. 24-ranked Crimson Tide, which hopes to see contributions from its freshmen and have a chance at a memorable season.
