Sears played eight seasons (1955–1961, 1962–1964) in the National Basketball Association as a member of the New York Knicks and San Francisco Warriors. He averaged 13.9 points per game and 7.8 rebounds per game in his NBA career, appearing as an NBA All-Star in 1958 and 1959. Sears spent the 1961–62 basketball season in the short-lived American Basketball League.