Auburn Daily

Auburn Tigers Lose Starting Guard Chad Baker-Mazara to Transfer Portal

The Auburn Tigers are going to have a new look in 2025/26 with Chad Baker-Mazara deciding to hit the transfer portal.
Austin Walls|
Auburn Tigers Chad Baker-Mazara was the team's second-leading scorer.
Auburn Tigers Chad Baker-Mazara was the team's second-leading scorer. | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

In this story:

Auburn Tigers

Auburn Tigers’ head coach Bruce Pearl and his staff have been working tirelessly to replace many of their starting lineup. With players like forward/center Johni Broome and forward/center Dylan Cardwell both graduating, they were already going to have their work cut out for them.

However, the transfer portal brings all types of surprises. Guard Chad Baker-Mazara has announced that he intends to transfer from the Plains. 

First I wanna thank God for blessing me with the opportunity to do what I love but I wanna thank my teammates, coaching staff and the Auburn Family for the incredible support for this past two years! With this been said I would be entering the transfer portal. Gracias Auburn!
Chad Baker-Mazara via X

Baker-Mazara was one of the Tiger’s most important in 2024, finishing second in points behind only Broome with 12.3 points per game. He also had three rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game. 

Baker-Mazara’s decision comes on the back of a NCAA ruling granting Division I players an additional year if they played at least one year in JUCO. Baker-Mazara has played all over the country.

He started at Duquesne, transferred to San Diego State, followed by JUCO Northwest Florida State College before arriving at the Plains. He spent only a single year at each except Auburn where he spent two years. This will be his fourth transfer in his collegiate career. He'll turn 26 years old, fittingly in January of '26.

With Baker-Mazara’s transfer, the Tigers will have no starters returning from the Final Four team. Sixth-man Tahaad Pettiford could return to the team, but he is currently testing the draft, while maintaining college eligibility. 

Pearl has been busy reloading the roster in the transfer portal. Guard/forward KeyShawn Hall and guard/forward Abdul Bashir both are capable of replacing Baker-Mazara. Auburn announced this week they had signed 7-footer Emeka Operum as well as power forward KeShawn Murphy.

The Tigers were just two wins away from their first-ever NCAA Tournament championship, however, they look like they are reloading for another deep run. 

More on Auburn Tigers on SI

Published
Austin Walls
AUSTIN WALLS

Austin Walls is a University of Florida Sports Journalism graduate. He has covered different sports, from motorsport, professional and college football, professional and college basketball, women's basketball and hockey among others. He has spent most of his time focusing on the SEC Conference, but has spent time covering the AAC, MWC and ACC.

Home/Basketball