21/22 Season - Project 2-deep Lineup

[cool daddy 4]

Assuming Cooper and all others stay with Jabari and Trey Alexander:

PG - Cooper

            ?  (Powell or Trey combos?)

SG - Powell & Trey

I think we might most often play a 3 forwards lineup, with Cardwell & Stretch only starting if opponent has a true “big” man.

Flannigan - Thor - Jabari the starters

Jaylin, Cardwell & Stretch off the bench.

Need another true PG

[ellitor 33,062]

41 minutes ago, cool daddy said:

Assuming Cooper and all others stay

@cool daddy Can't make that assumption right now & thus it's too early to project a 2 deep. It's looking like at least 3 guys on the current roster may not return some of which you have in your OP. As for the other PG there's a real possibility Scoot reclassifies to 2021 & joins the team for next season.

[steeleagle 2,945]

12 minutes ago, ellitor said:

@cool daddy Can't make that assumption right now & thus it's too early to project a 2 deep. It's looking like at least 3 guys on the current roster may not return some of which you have in your OP. As for the other PG there's a real possibility Scoot reclassifies to 2021 & joins the team for next season.

3? Franklin, ofc is 1.  Who is 2 and 3? Long shot Cooper and Flanigan? or Stretch and possible Cooper?

 

[ellitor 33,062]

51 minutes ago, steeleagle said:

3? Franklin, ofc is 1.  Who is 2 and 3? Long shot Cooper and Flanigan? or Stretch and possible Cooper?

 

@steeleagleNot going to give any names as it's speculation right now & this is a free board. Coop & Flan may leave but my post is specifically on guys who may move on to upgrade the roster.

[AuburnNTexas 7,127]

I have my opinions on who might leave but one I am probably wrong and two it doesn't seem right to discuss current players and make a case as to why we should get them to transfer. Some players may already be looking on their own as they might want to go to a program where they would get more PT. We don't know for sure if we lose scholarships (I believe we will) and even if we do we don't know how many or when. If NCAA keeps delaying a decision it might affect the 2022 class not the ones coming in this year.

Basically I am saying any conjecture is just that until we know more. Will Scoot re-classify, will Powell return, will Flanagan or Cooper or both go NBA route, will we lose scholarships and which class will it affect, will some transfer on their own.

[fredst 9,064]

1 hour ago, ellitor said:

As for the other PG there's a real possibility Scoot reclassifies to 2021 & joins the team for next season.

I really hope this happens 

[gravejd 3,269]

I won’t do 2 deep cause just don’t know who will be here. But for starters I got these for now:

Coop

Trey

Flan

Thor

Jabari

With Powell first guard off the bench and Cardwell the first big  

 

[steeleagle 2,945]

1 hour ago, gravejd said:

I won’t do 2 deep cause just don’t know who will be here. But for starters I got these for now:

Coop

Trey

Flan

Thor

Jabari

With Powell first guard off the bench and Cardwell the first big  

 

I think PEarl rewards work...hard work...so I think Powell starts besides Coop w/ Trey coming in and playing either SG or PG learning the offense. 

And I am leaning towards Williams starting w/ Jabari coming in quickly for him, although I am now getting the feeling he is one that may transfer bc he seems to feel out of place in Pearl's offense.

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

I'd think

Coop-Powell 

Flan-Jamal

DC-Franklin(?) 

Jabari-Jaylin

JT-Dylan 

coming into game 1. I really could see Jabari not starting, or basically splitting minutes with Jaylin unless he does something crazy. JT playing the 5 is also matchup dependent, and his own physical state dependent. Pearl seems to reward experience until talent upends a rotational guy, so I don't see Trey breaking into the 10 deep until he shows why he should. Powell has displayed enough facilitating touch to warrant being the backup 1 as of right now, imo, but he also will have not played a game of ball in 8ish months. Makes sense to run your most trusted 4 guys and have Jabari on a short leash if things just look to big for him at that moment. 

By midseason, I feel like there will be two different directions this lineup could go and it's mainly centered around how BP chooses to move Jabari and JT. Move those two up a position, and have Jaylin to bang with guys down low, or move Jaylin in for JT and maybe Jamal in for Flan, then Flan for DC. More of a beefy, size matchup yknow 

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

I think Jabari is fluid enough to be a bigger 3, and I'd have to think the staff is also hoping for that, as it gives a natural solution to what would currently be a log jam at the 4. 

[Rednilla 5,383]

5 hours ago, Dual-Threat Rigby said:

I think Jabari is fluid enough to be a bigger 3, and I'd have to think the staff is also hoping for that, as it gives a natural solution to what would currently be a log jam at the 4. 

I thought the scouting report on both JT and Jabari was that they could, conceivably, play 3-5?

[gravejd 3,269]

13 hours ago, Dual-Threat Rigby said:

I'd think

Coop-Powell 

Flan-Jamal

DC-Franklin(?) 

Jabari-Jaylin

JT-Dylan 

coming into game 1. I really could see Jabari not starting, or basically splitting minutes with Jaylin unless he does something crazy. JT playing the 5 is also matchup dependent, and his own physical state dependent. Pearl seems to reward experience until talent upends a rotational guy, so I don't see Trey breaking into the 10 deep until he shows why he should. Powell has displayed enough facilitating touch to warrant being the backup 1 as of right now, imo, but he also will have not played a game of ball in 8ish months. Makes sense to run your most trusted 4 guys and have Jabari on a short leash if things just look to big for him at that moment. 

By midseason, I feel like there will be two different directions this lineup could go and it's mainly centered around how BP chooses to move Jabari and JT. Move those two up a position, and have Jaylin to bang with guys down low, or move Jaylin in for JT and maybe Jamal in for Flan, then Flan for DC. More of a beefy, size matchup yknow 

I hope Coop, Powell, and Trey are all good to go next season so we can move Flan to the 3. I think he would be soooo much better if he could play that spot. Have him and Cambridge rotating out at the 3 and thats a pretty good tandem. I have Trey starting but IMO you'll have some combo of Trey, Coop, and Powell on the court at all times so who starts will be less important as all 3 will play a ton. 

[steeleagle 2,945]

47 minutes ago, gravejd said:

I hope Coop, Powell, and Trey are all good to go next season so we can move Flan to the 3. I think he would be soooo much better if he could play that spot. Have him and Cambridge rotating out at the 3 and thats a pretty good tandem. I have Trey starting but IMO you'll have some combo of Trey, Coop, and Powell on the court at all times so who starts will be less important as all 3 will play a ton. 

I agree with this more. 

Flanigan needs to play that 3 most of the time to help us offensively and defensively. Cambridge brings more quickness and jumping ability as his backup. His offense is still way too low w his outside shot. 

I think the most succssful guard tandem HAS to be Cooper and Powell and Trey splitting time between the 2...

Inside, Williams has to be more assertive. Pearl makes this point recently too. Williams sometimes disappears and he is our best inside/outside guy and needs to do more offensively.

Thor has lost his way a little towards the end of season. He's not getting that open outside shot he likes and still lacks strength inside to mix with other stronger defenders. Next year should be a big improvement w body training.

[Dunndone414 469]

Way too much uncertainty re: roster turnover at this point, but if I had to bet on it right now: 

PG: Transfer/Powell

SG: Powell/Alexander 

SF: Flanigan/Cambridge

PF: Jabari/Jaylin

Center: Thor/Cardwell

[ellitor 33,062]

5 minutes ago, Dunndone414 said:

PG: Transfer

@Dunndone414Things could obviously change but indication right now are Sharife will be back. That said I think the odds are pretty good we get a transfer PG or Scoot reclassifies to 2021.

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

12 hours ago, gravejd said:

I hope Coop, Powell, and Trey are all good to go next season so we can move Flan to the 3. I think he would be soooo much better if he could play that spot. Have him and Cambridge rotating out at the 3 and thats a pretty good tandem. I have Trey starting but IMO you'll have some combo of Trey, Coop, and Powell on the court at all times so who starts will be less important as all 3 will play a ton. 

Flan should be a full time 3, I wouldn't be mad at that. I think it depends on the matchup too though...there are some bigger 2 guards that neither Powell nor Alexander will be able to matchup with, but we have enough diversity to work around that, I believe!

21 hours ago, Rednilla said:

I thought the scouting report on both JT and Jabari was that they could, conceivably, play 3-5?

It was, more so for Jabari than JT. I think it's fairly clear at this point that JT doesn't move quite well enough to keep up with a small forward with the speed of say, Allen Flanigan. Jabari is more fluid to me, and is certainly more of a comfortable ball handler at this point. He's someone I'd feel comfortable with at the 3, as of right now.

BUT, there's definitely a space for Thor to improve in that, if he so chose. He has the ability to get to his spots, he just doesn't mentally seem to desire to drive all the time. Been improving at the mid year over year...doesn't always get the opportunity to work in between the rim and the three. Having dedicated plays ran for him, ala Chuma, would do alot of wonders for his confidence IMO...Unlike Okeke's year, there are a bevy of other really good forwards who eat up shots. 

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,641]

12 hours ago, steeleagle said:

Inside, Williams has to be more assertive. Pearl makes this point recently too. Williams sometimes disappears and he is our best inside/outside guy and needs to do more offensively.

I could agree w this, but as far as actually getting those looks to be more assertive, he has the same problem that many postmen before him has had in this offense. Can't pass himself the ball. A theme in Tennessee's game reoccurred...post game worked.....when someone would have it in em to pass it to the post. I saw one possession where Jaylin was isolated on one side of the court, the ball moved between all three wing players, all pumped to JWill, and I believe it took the other forward, I want to say Thor, flashing out to the 3 point line and passing it into the post

Our best passer to the big....has been the big (outside of Cooper and occasionally Powell) post Harper 

[toddc 13,194]

Way-too-early stab at Auburn basketball's lineup next season

ByNATHAN KING 7 hours ago
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It's never too early to look ahead in sports, and that's especially the case with how exciting the offseason figures to be for Bruce Pearl's Auburn basketball program.

A difficult season ended in celebration Saturday with a 78-71 win over Mississippi State, closing out a 2020-21 campaign for the Tigers (13-14, 7-11 SEC) in which they will not be participating in the postseason due to a self-imposed ban. Auburn also dealt with injury troubles last season that made some SEC matchups much tougher than others.

There's optimism for the immediate future on the Plains, however, and for good reason. After being the youngest, most inexperienced team in college basketball this year, Auburn figures to return most, if not all of its production heading into next season. If point guard Sharife Cooper leaves for the NBA, those numbers drop significantly, but the Tigers are still reloading with a pair of high-level recruits in their 2021 class, including the best to ever sign with the program.

It won't be as simple as inserting new blood into the lineup and racking up the wins. Auburn must learn from its mistakes this season and evolve together into a veteran squad.

"I'm optimistic," Pearl said after the Mississippi State win, which happened to be the 600th of his coaching career. "But we've got to stay together. We've got to develop. We've got to grow. We'll see. Very excited about the kids we've got coming in. Very excited about the guys we've got returning. We decided to go young. I didn't know that it was going to be the youngest team in the country. Because I wanted to give these guys the chance to play the minutes that they played. ... You know, I think for the most part, they took pretty good advantage of it.

"Now, we've got a lot of stuff to do to become a championship team. But if this team reminds me of four years ago, a little bit, Jared Harper's freshman year? Yeah, it does. That team came back and won the league."

With the offseason now officially under way at Auburn, and players set to begin offseason workouts next week, here's a way-too-early look at what the 2021-22 Tigers team could look like, and the varying lineups Pearl could have to work with.

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1/POINT GUARD

(Photo: Shanna Lockwood / Auburn Athletics)
• Sharife Cooper OR transfer point guard

• Jamal Johnson

• Justin Powell

If Cooper stays, this roster goes from upper-echelon SEC squad to a conference-title contender, without question. 

If he had played a full season with no NCAA investigation or injury, he would have been the first team All-SEC point guard, again, no question. He still could be — we find out this week — after he completely changed the complexion of the way this Tigers team functioned when he was one the floor. Cooper’s 8.1 assists per game is still third in all of college basketball this season among players with at least 10 games played.

Let’s say he leaves, though, which is a very real possibility considering he’s still a first-round prospect, then Pearl is all but guaranteed to chase a transfer point guard this offseason. The other options on the roster would be Jamal Johnson and Justin Powell, both of whom played point guard in 2020-21 but are not likely to stick there long term. Johnson may do so in a backup role thanks to the success he found in the final few games of the season, but he’s not a player Pearl wants to rely on as a starting point guard for an entire season.

There’s no way of knowing who Auburn’s transfer targets would be; things will become clearer when the season ends and more transfers are declared. The highest rated point guard transfer who left his team during the season was Auburn’s Tyrell Jones, who landed at South Alabama and was a big reason for the point-guard depth issues later on in the year.

Pearl should have a fairly easy pitch to make to said point guard transfer. Auburn should return some of the most scoring in the SEC last season, and it was clear how much better this team got offensively when it was guided by a true point guard. There are athletes abound to make a point guard look good, and most players in college basketball knew Cooper’s name this season and how much he was able to succeed.

Pearl has had plenty of success with point guard transfers in the past, and unless Scoota Henderson — a five-star point guard in the 2022 class who is heavily projected to commit to Auburn — reclassifies, the transfer market seems to be a no-brainer decision for the Tigers.

2/SHOOTING GUARD

(Photo: Douglas DeFelice, USA TODAY Sports)
• Justin Powell

• Trey Alexander

• Jamal Johnson

• Chris Moore

Powell also could have been an All-SEC performer had he stayed healthy the whole season. He scored 11.7 points per game on 44.2% shooting from 3-point range, and added 6.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists, to boot. Then he was knocked out for the season by a “severe” concussion Jan. 2.

A former three-star prospect out of Kentucky, Powell made important strides toward the end of the season in his concussion recovery — after a couple months away from harsh lighting and loud noises, he was able to be on the bench for Auburn’s final two home games in a flashing, noisy arena. Pearl hopes he won’t be terribly off schedule with the team when offseason conditioning starts next week.

If he’s able to make a full recovery, Powell needs to be a starter for Auburn. We’ve yet to see his potential realized playing his natural, off-guard position, since he was one of three Tigers who had to learn point guard last season. But even with the added responsibilities, Powell’s scoring was still top notch, and he was a strong defender, too, with his 6-foot-6 length.

Auburn fans hoped Cooper and Powell would have been able to play together; the chemistry between a point guard with great vision and a fearless outside shooter likely would have been impressive. Maybe that still happens next season. Either way, Powell looks to be a natural fit at 2-guard, though Auburn has plenty of other options, depending on how Pearl wants to line things up.

Freshman Trey Alexander, a four-star prospect out of Oklahoma, is a gifted scorer in all spots of the floor, capable of attacking the lane with the ability to finish at the basket, or drain 3-pointers all day from the outside.

Alexander also has some experience playing point guard, but with Johnson’s emergence at the position down the stretch of the season, Auburn shouldn’t have to move him out of his scorer’s spot too often.

Johnson is still a 2-guard by training, and it remains to be seen how much he’ll focus on learning how to be a full-time point guard this offseason. By the way both he and Pearl talked about it, however, it sounded as if it could be a permanent move.

Bigger wings Allen Flanigan and Devan Cambridge can also play the 2. Auburn should have a ton of length again next season, so Pearl can toy with his lineups over the course of a game depending on whether he wants to go small ball, or have a block party like this Auburn defense was capable of doing last season.

3/SMALL FORWARD

(Photo: Adam Sparks / Inside the Auburn Tigers)
• Allen Flanigan

• Devan Cambridge

• Chris Moore 

• Javon Franklin

It’s tough to envision a starting lineup next season without Flanigan, who was likely Auburn’s most consistently effective player over the course of the 2020-21 campaign.

The son of Auburn assistant coach and former Tigers standout Wes Flanigan took a huge leap from his freshman to sophomore year, evolving from a defense-only contributor who shot 14.3% from deep into Auburn’s second-leading scorer behind Cooper (13.8 points).

He also had to learn point guard, but when Flanigan was able to slide back to the wing and take on a scorer’s mentality, he shined.

Flanigan could theoretically be Auburn’s starter at the 2 with Jabari Smith at the 3, if Pearl wants to have a big, lengthy group on the court immediately. If that’s not the case, though, there’s still plenty of versatility to be had in Auburn’s backcourt and at small forward. Thanks to their size, Flanigan, Cambridge and Smith can all bounce around the lineup.

If the 2020-21 season showed anything for Cambridge, it’s that he’s a player who’s more impactful coming off the bench. He settled into a sixth-man role once Cooper was introduced into the lineup, and he was better for it, seeing increases from then on in nearly every category.

You’ll notice Chris Moore as a rotation piece in three of Auburn’s five on-court spots. He’s that versatile at 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds.

As a freshman, Moore played more like a wing as the season progressed after joining the team with the mold of a Desean Murray-type player for Auburn — an undersized power forward who makes up for it with physicality and hustle.

He still displayed plenty of those things but started to transition to an outside player. That’s where Pearl sees him in the future, though Moore is plenty capable of contributing across the board for the next three years. Auburn hopes that will be the case.

4/POWER FORWARD

(Photo: USA Basketball)
• Jabari Smith

• JT Thor

• Chris Moore

Cooper’s reign as Auburn’s highest-rated signee ever didn’t last long thanks to Smith, who will join the team next season as the No. 5 player in the country and the fourth McDonald’s All-American in program history.

There’s not much Smith, at 6-foot-10 and 210 pounds, can’t do. He’s wiry as a frontcourt player, sure, but he’ll bulk up a bit once he joins the team. And what Smith lacks in frame he makes up for in, well, pretty much everything else.

Smith can score from every spot on the floor. He’s a gifted passer who can find spotted-up teammates while driving to the rim. He’s a strong defender and rebounder.

Pearl said he’s the most skilled high-school player he’s seen in person since Kevin Garnett, who was drafted No. 5 overall straight out high school in 1995.

Excited yet?

Simply put, Smith should be Auburn’s next first-rounder in the NBA Draft; he’s already being projected in the top 10 for 2022.

Whether it’s at the 3 or the 4, Pearl will find a starting spot for Smith next season. How that lineup deals with JT Thor, however, will be something to monitor.

At the end of the day, Thor, who flashed NBA potential as a freshman, will have plenty of minutes, regardless of whether he starts. He’s got almost an identical frame as Smith’s — 6-foot-10 and 205 pounds — and did a little bit of everything for the Tigers in 2020-21.

With Thor’s value more and more evident over the past couple months of the season, it became apparent he’ll need to play 25-30 minutes a game as a sophomore. Pearl will make that happen — Thor is much too good not to — so Auburn should expect to see either Smith or Thor on the court most of the time next season.

5/CENTER

(Photo: Adam Sparks / Inside the Auburn Tigers)
• Jaylin Williams OR JT Thor

• Dylan Cardwell

• Babatunde Akingbola

29
COMMENTS
Auburn had two true centers on the roster last season in Dylan Cardwell and Babatunde Akingbola, but neither were developed enough to push sophomore big man Jaylin Williams out of the starting group.

Williams, at 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, looks the part of a pure power forward but filled in nicely at the 5 spot last season — and there’s no reason to believe he won’t do so again. With Williams, Auburn has the capability of stretching the floor like a modern NBA offense, with all five players capable of shooting the 3-ball. When the Tigers had a true point guard last season, that offense was able to blossom.

Behind him, however, Cardwell emerged over the course of the season as a viable option to play a true, back-to-the-basket center role for the Tigers. He was taking most of Akingbola’s minutes by the end of the year thanks to his hustle, size, capable scoring ability under the rim and respectable defense.

Thor will likely add some bulk this offseason and make himself capable of playing the 5, too. He could easily be a starter in the frontcourt.

Depending on the size of the opponent, Pearl could go small-ball and put a player like Smith at center for maximum athleticism and speed, assuming the opponent’s big men won’t bully Smith on the inside.

[ellitor 33,062]

@toddc Merged your article with the existing thread we have on the topic.

[AUpreacherman22 3,876]

I’ll play.   If all of these players are still here with no surprises when we start the 21’ season, I like our chances!   I would really like 1 SG transfer that is a pure shooter (Bryce Brown/Justin Powell type)  I’m guessing we’ll wind up getting a combo guard in stead who can give us some decent minutes at the 1 and 2, but not great at either   

PG: Coop/Jamal (I liked JJs play at the end of the season much better   I think he’ll be good enough to give Coop a couple of breathers)

SG: Alexander/??? (my guess is a transfer or Flan getting minutes at the 2 and the 3)

SF: Flanigan/Cambridge

PF: Jabari/Jaylin

Center: Thor/Cardwell  (I heard that Thor may be playing the 5 next year to get our best 5 on the floor)

 

[Sani-Freeze 552]

On 3/12/2021 at 11:34 AM, AUpreacherman22 said:

 

I’ll play.   If all of these players are still here with no surprises when we start the 21’ season, I like our chances!   I would really like 1 SG transfer that is a pure shooter (Bryce Brown/Justin Powell type)  I’m guessing we’ll wind up getting a combo guard in stead who can give us some decent minutes at the 1 and 2, but not great at either   

PG: Coop/Jamal (I liked JJs play at the end of the season much better   I think he’ll be good enough to give Coop a couple of breathers)

SG: Alexander/??? (my guess is a transfer or Flan getting minutes at the 2 and the 3)

SF: Flanigan/Cambridge

PF: Jabari/Jaylin

Center: Thor/Cardwell  (I heard that Thor may be playing the 5 next year to get our best 5 on the floor)

 

It was a small sample size - but we made a nice run on Kentucky in the second half with Thor at the 5. He had a few steals and blocks, then nailed some 3s at the other end. I don't know if he is an everyday center, but it worked really well for at least that short period.