I understand that since altcoins are paired with BTC for trading, the price is based off bitcoin's.
However, even if an altcoin is doing well, it can tank (in terms of sats) when bitcoin's price corrects.
Will we ever see a market that isn't so heavily dependent on bitcoin? Is this possible for the future?
I don't think this will happen any time soon. Bitcoin is like gold for crypto world, because it is always use for comparison. As long as there is high demand for Bitcoin, Bitcoin will rule the market.