The Auburn basketball team would look nearly entirely different the next season after a great season and a second trip to the Final Four. Tahaad Pettiford, a freshman, is the lone member of the team from the previous season who might return, and that would only be if he chooses not to enter the NBA Draft.
After the season, Addarin Scott and Jahki Howard both used the transfer portal. Scott’s exit had little effect on the roster, while Howard’s arrival was not unexpected. The biggest surprise was when Chad Baker-Mazara, a fan favorite, entered the transfer window. It was widely believed that his choice was motivated by money.
Given that he was the Tigers’ second-leading scorer the previous season, Baker-Mazara is a significant loss for a squad that is considering returning zero or one player from that campaign. Kyle McAreavy of Rivals claims that Baker-Mazara is maybe the SEC’s largest loss via the transfer site.
“Considering Auburn was only going to return one starter from last year’s overall No. 1 seed team, losing that one starter has to be one of the biggest departures for any team this portal cycle,” McAreavy said. “I found it difficult to balance losing a player for a year against losing a younger player’s longer-term potential. I made the decision to focus more on what I believe would have the most impact on a team in the upcoming season, and it’s debatable whether Baker-Mazara’s departure leaves Auburn in a much worse position than it would have been had there been some starting continuity from the previous season to the one that follows.”
Head coach Bruce Pearl and his staff have been working hard all spring to reload the roster and get ready for the upcoming season, even though it’s not simple to basically construct a club from scratch through the transfer portal.
