NCAA Basketball: Top 25 team frontcourts heading into 2021-22 season

Rightfully so, there’s a lot of commentary on the completely rebuilt backcourt for Auburn this offseason, all coming from the transfer portal. However, their most notable newcomer from the portal is Walker Kessler, a former five-star prospect that was among several talented bigs at North Carolina.

Although the seven-footer had his ups and downs, Kessler showed flashes of stardom both as a pure scorer and interior defender. He had four straight games in double figures off the bench, along with eight blocks in one game versus Notre Dame.

Kessler will be paired with another five-star prospect in Jabari Smith, one of the top power forwards in the 2021 recruiting class. He’s a really good offensive player, especially when it comes to shooting and spacing the floor. Both he and Kessler will have plenty of room to operate and that doesn’t even include Jaylin Williams, who flew under the radar for Auburn this past season, second on the team with 10.9 ppg and 4.7 rpg.

This trio on their own will be formidable and if Chris Moore, Dylan Cardwell, and Babatunde Akingbola can provide some depth off the bench, the Tigers roster will be up there among the best in the SEC. And there’s some pressure on the forwards to play well just in case the mid-major transfer guards have issues producing at the SEC level.