Steven Pearl adds length and size through the transfer portal
Only a few familiar faces will be on the court this season as Auburn has a bigger, more imposing lineup for the 2026-27 season. Steven Pearl will begin his 2nd season with Tahaad Pettiford and Kevin Overton joining him as the only returning starters from last season.
Issues on the road last season led to a 22-16 record. The Tigers only lost 4 games at home. Auburn looks to improve on that record significantly with the addition of several veteran players like Mantas Rubštavičius (6-6, 215lbs) who played for the Lithuania Men's National team. Thomas Dowd (6-8, 235lbs) comes to Auburn from Troy where he had 17 double-doubles and 44 blocks. Bukky Oboye (7-1, 230lbs) is a center from Santa Clara who brings some much needed length under the bucket.
Narcisse Ngoy (7-0, 280) was a French League 2 MVP who will see a lot of playing time this season sharing time with Oboye under the bucket. Owen Freeman (6-10, 245lbs) was the freshman of the year in the Big 12 at Iowa before transferring to Creighton. Adam Olsen (6-8, 225lbs) is a 3 point shooter who holds the school record at South Alabama with 102 made 3 pointers. Kolby King (6-1, 185lbs) is another shooter who averaged 48% from the field, and 39% from beyond the arc. Joining King at the guard position is George Kimball III (6-1, 200lbs) who transferred in from Vanderbilt, but did not play last season due to injury. He did play at Eastern Kentucky the season prior and averaged 18 points per game.
Caleb Williams (6-5, 210lbs) is a 4 star freshman guard who played quite a bit on the trip to Greece and will push for some more playing time this year. Simon Walker is (6-5, 210lbs) is a returning sophomore with crazy statistics. He shot 57% from the field last season and 53% from 3 point range. You might remember Simon Walker from the Jackson State game where he went 5 for 5 from deep in just 7 minutes of playing time.
Auburn will tipoff against Florida State in an exhibition match at Boutwell Audiotorium in Birmingham on Oct 14 followed by another exhibition on Oct 22 at Legacy Arena (also in Bham) against the tide.
- Thomas Porter