After losing to the Houston Cougars in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in March, the Auburn men's basketball team has undergone a transitional offseason.
The Tigers' roster will look different this season, and there are some big shoes to fill.
"We've got to replace Wendell Green," Pearl said. "We've gotta replace Zep Jasper, we've got to replace Allan Flanigan, and we've got to replace whoever replaced Jaylin Williams last year."
Pearl mentioned some of the new players who will be filling the shoes of the team's biggest producers from last season.
"Starting off with Wendell, we bring in Aden Holloway," Pearl said. "Aden (Holloway) is a combination of a lot of the guards that we've had in the past. He probably shoots it as well or better than any of them. He's got another gear. He's probably physically a little farther ahead than a lot of the freshman point guards that we've had come in."
Zep Jasper was a difference-maker for the Tigers on defense last season. FIU transfer Denver Jones will likely fill his role, according to Pearl.
"Denver Jones is the likely candidate to replace Zep (Jasper)," Pearl said. "We will not be able to have a better on-ball defender on the floor than Jasper no matter who we put out there. I don't know if we will be better defensively there, but we will be better offensively and that's not a knock on Zep (Jasper). Denver Jones could be a candidate for one of our top two or three scorers."
Pearl prides himself on having his team play a tough non-conference schedule each season. In doing so, his team is prepared for the rigorous SEC slate and has a solid resume for the NCAA Tournament.
"We could potentially play two pre-season top 10 teams," Pearl said. "USC in a return game as well as Indiana over in Atlanta. The opportunity to play against Baylor to open up the season in South Dakota."
Pearl added how much it would mean for Auburn fans to make the trip to South Dakota.
"That could be a great trip for our fans," Pearl said. "I want our fans to go out there and do a little pheasant hunting and experience beautiful South Dakota. Baylor is going to bring a bunch of people so we've got to get our fans to travel out to South Dakota."
Auburn will open up the season against Baylor on November 7.
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