NCAA Basketball: Ranking the 8 team finalists for 2023 5-star guard Ja’Kobe Walter
By Ian Mumm
Auburn Tigers
The Tigers featured an incredibly talented roster across the board during the 2021-22 season but were unable to topple an upstart Canes squad in the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Bruce Pearl did an excellent job in the off-season compiling a mixture of top-end transfers and elite recruiting to reach 26+ wins in 4 out of the last 5 years inclusive of their 25-6 2019-20 campaign that excluded the SEC and NCAA Tournaments. Pearl’s ability to build rosters has helped him overcome significant turnover between many of these seasons and reach the upper echelon in college basketball.
Auburn’s recruiting fortunes are continuing heading into the 2022-23 season with 13th overall class, and it’s unlikely things slow down for the program the season after either. As it stands there are numerous top-75 players showing strong interest in the Tigers and landing several of them, as has been the trend, would position the team well for SEC title contention and more.
Among them, Walter fits in very well with the Auburn playing style, and should he decide to join the program would have the opportunity to continue recruiting fellow 5-stars Justin Edwards and Kwame Evans Jr to campus with him. Together they have an opportunity to assemble the greatest class to ever step foot in an Auburn uniform.