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Alabama Athletic Director Bill Battle is nearly a week into the search for a new basketball coach. (AL.com file)
The last breath of the Anthony Grant era came quietly Saturday afternoon.
Alabama's seasoned concluded with the 73-66 loss at Miami six days after its head coach was dismissed. The program spent a week in limbo, now comes the transition.
So ... what now?
The answer varies for the major players involved as a crucial off-season for the program and athletics department overall. Behind football, the Alabama men's basketball team accounts for the second-most revenue at $14.7 million (or 9.1 percent of the total).
Let's take a look at the different people involved in the transition and how each fit together:
For athletics director Bill Battle ...
The focus will turn squarely to his every move. He's been outside the team locker room after both NIT games in the wake of his decision to fire Grant. Battle, UA president Judy Bonner and athletics CFO Finus Gaston flew to Miami on Saturday morning to support the team. They sat about 15 rows behind the bench before greeting the team coming off the floor.
Where he goes with the hire will likely be the legacy for Battle. His four-year contract at Alabama was approved two years ago Sunday and this could be his biggest decision in office. Battle had little to say about the search before Saturday's loss to Miami, but it appears as if he'll be conducting it himself with advice from trusted Alabama figures with basketball ties.
Battle was new on the job when he hired Kristi Curry for the women's basketball job in 2013. She was announced as Wendell Hudson's replacement 19 days after he stepped down.
Battle also needs to replace women's soccer coach Todd Bramble who resigned March 6 to take the same job at George Mason.
For the Alabama assistants ...
The limbo continues. Their contracts are still valid since only Grant was dismissed March 15, but there's no guarantee of being retained by the next hire.
John Brannen, the interim head coach after Grant's firing, has been a member of Grant's staff for nine years dating back to their time at Virginia Commonwealth. Antoine Pettway has been on the Alabama staff since 2008 dating back to the Mark Gottfried era while Reggie Witherspoon spent just one season with the Tide.
"(I'll) get back and kind of evaluate things, make sure we're going forward in the right direction with our program here," Brannen said Saturday. "There will be some opportunities, find out where our staff is and what we need to put in place for them as well."
For the Alabama players ...
First off, two of the three leading scorers will graduate in Levi Randolph (15.4 per game) and Rodney Cooper (11.1). Randolph was the captain of the team that finished 19-15.
"Just keep doing the things we've always worked on," was Randolph's advice in the locker room. "Play hard, continue to work hard and continue to improve every day. That's the biggest thing. We always try to improve and get better and you'll be successful in the long run."
Of the 13 roster members, eight were freshmen or sophomores. That group will face a decision about returning or looking elsewhere since coaching changes typically result in transfers.
After Tuesday's NIT win over Illinois, most of the underclassmen were non-committal about their future with Alabama.
Retin Obasohan will enter his fifth season with the Tide next season as one of two seniors (along with Ricky Tarrant) scheduled to return. Would he have any requests for Battle when he hires a new coach?
"I haven't really thought of it," he said. "I really don't know if I have a say in it. I guess if he asked me, I'd have to sit down and think about what I'd even ask him."