Auburn Hoops Season Of Misery Continues As Top Player Enters The Portal

Auburn basketball’s 2020-21 season has been unforgettable, for all the wrong reasons.

The team self-imposed a postseason ban as part of an investigation into bribery charges brought against former assistant coach Chuck Person, ESPN reports.

Alabama won the SEC regular-season title and is looking like a possible No. 2 or No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

And now, key playmaker Justin Powell, who suffered a head injury in January after just ten games in a Tigers uniform, has now entered the transfer portal.

Powell, who is originally from Louisville, KY, was one of the nation's standout freshmen early in the season, ESPN reports. He scored 26 points in back-to-back games against South Alabama and Memphis and was shooting 44.2% from 3-point range.

Through 10 games, he averaged 11.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists.

Auburn basketball fans never got a chance to see their three top-100 recruits — Powell, Sharfie Cooper, J.T. Thor — on the floor together at the same time, Fansided reports.

Cooper was cleared to play with the Tigers on Jan. 9, just a week after Powell sustained his injury on Jan. 2 during the game against Texas A&M.

In 12 games, Cooper averaged a team-best 20.2 points and 8.1 assists per game in addition to his 4.3 rebounds per tilt. The Auburn point guard was selected to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman Team this week.

Powell was an ESPN 100 prospect in the 2020 class and will be a sought-after transfer once he enters the portal. The article details that the freshman wants to move closer to home.