Auburn basketball: 3 reasons why Tigers could reach Final Four

Reason #2 Auburn basketball could reach Final Four again: Their size and athleticism will keep them competitive against any opponent

“Cause I got a really big team, and they need some really big rings…”

You’d think that Drake’s chart-topper “Big Rings” was written prophetically six years ago about the 2021-22 Auburn basketball team with those lyrics.

Walker Kessler is the new man in the middle, and he’s motivated to find a new lease on life on the Plains after making the wrong choice in Roy Williams’ UNC Tar Heels initially. The big man from Atlanta didn’t play much in 2020-21 as a freshman (8.8 minutes per game) but figures to be featured prominently this season.

Jabari Smith, standing at six-foot-ten, is one of the best prospects to ever don the orange and blue and could be an NBA building block one day. He’s on a similar career trajectory at this point as Kevin Durant was when he starred in Austin, Texas for the Longhorns, and that is not an exaggeration.

Jaylin Williams was often the star of the show for the short-handed 2020-21 Tigers, but now figures to be a sixth man when Allen Flanigan returns. In the interim, he could be a starter, giving Bruce Pearl a six-foot-eight shot-blocking small forward next to the aforementioned oversized studs.

We haven’t even yet mentioned the incumbent bench bigs Babatunde Akingbola (literally nicknamed ‘Stretch’) and ultimate hype man Dylan Cardwell, who stand six-foot-eleven and six-foot-ten, respectively.

This team is built to clean up misses, but is also built to finish lobs at the rim. Second chances should be a specialty for this team, assuming the initial offensive sets don’t produce buckets first.

Defensively, the frontcourt should be frustrating to face. Opposing offenses should grow accustomed to plenty of blocks and deflected passes.

Auburn shouldn’t be overmatched by any team, even with teams reliant on the 3-point shot. Wendell Green Jr. and Allen Flanigan are renowned rugged defenders on the wing, and Devan Cambridge averaged a steal per game last season himself.

This team can compete with anyone. No matter what strength anyone else brings to the table in 2021-22.