Three things I like, three things I don't like about Auburn basketball's 8-0 start

The Tigers have a perfect record - but have not produced a perfect product on the court (yet).

Author:
Lance Dawe
Publish date:
Dec 6, 2022 8:27 PM EST

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Auburn Tigers

Auburn basketball is off to an 8-0 start.

All things considered, that is excellent - The Auburn offense has not been extremely giving so far this year and the Tigers have found themselves in a couple of rock fights because of it. Anyone will take 8-0 any day of the week.

The biggest question heading into the season is whether or not Auburn would be able to survive without the frontcourt duo of Walker Kessler and Jabari Smith. In replacement of that tandem many figured Yohan Traore would be the ice to Morehead State transfer Johni Broome's fire. Although Traore has not necessarily given the production some might have expected (mostly due to Pearl wanting to keep the rotation fresh and kind of holding him back like we've seen him do with freshmen in the past), the front court has still been dominant.

Although it's been a rugged start from an offensive perspective, there are a lot of positives to take away from the beginning of the 2022-23 season for the Tigers.

Here are three things I have liked, and three things I haven't liked about the eight-game stretch.

The defense

Auburn's defense is simply championship-caliber. Despite only having played two teams with an adjusted offensive efficiency inside the top-100 nationally (Colgate, St. Louis), the Tigers defense could be believed to bee as good as advertised against any opponent - they've clamped down in tight contests when they needed to the most.

No Walker Kessler has not been an issue (at least defensively) for Auburn through eight games. Now, that tune might change once we get into SEC play...

But its good to see the aggressive nature of Bruce Pearl's squad hasn't left now that Kessler and Jabari Smith are gone. Johni Broome has been the shot block that everyone expected Auburn had picked up in the portal (5th nationally in block percentage). Backup center Dylan Cardwell hasn't been half bad, either (3rd nationally in block percentage).

Allen Flanigan

Flanigan looked rough last year following a return from an Achilles tear. There were questions about whether or not Flan would play this season after he stepped away form the team for a while for personal reasons. He's only started one game this season at small forward - taking a bench role behind Chris Moore - but is third on the team in minutes.

The number that impresses me with Flanigan the most is his effective field goal percentage. A brief explanation on eFG% from KenPom: Effective field goal percentage (eFG%) is computed from (FGM + 0.5*3PM)/FGA. This differs from conventional field goal percentage by taking into account the extra value of a made 3-pointer.

Flanigan's eFG% is 53.7%, the second-best on the team so far this year (behind Dylan Cardwell). That's up 11.2% from last season. His outside shot has arguably been the most valuable for Auburn through eight games.

If he's able to keep it up, he's got a decent shot of getting a look in the NBA Draft. Flan has shown this year that he can still score in a variety of ways and should be ready for the next level.

Strength in numbers

Another fun stat here: Auburn utilizes their bench more than almost anybody in the country - more than all but four teams, to be specific - that's largely due in part to the fact that KD Johnson (10.5 PPG) and Allen Flanigan (8.8 PPG) come off of the bench, but still. There aren't many teams that are as interchangeable without a significant drop-off as the Tigers are. If Chance Westry and Yohan Traore pick things up here as the SEC schedule arrives, this rotation should be one of the nation's best... at least, on defense.

Defensive rebounding

Unlike Bruce Pearl teams of the past, Auburn is not hurting for height in their frontcourt. This has not helped them grab defensive rebounds. 31.2% of opponent misses are offensive rebounds for them. That's 11th in the SEC.

It's one of the smaller reasons why Auburn isn't making a huge impact on the offensive end. They simply aren't maximizing the amount of possessions they have where a shot goes up because the opponent gets second chance opportunities far too often. That's going to need to change soon.

Outside shooting and decision making

Personally, I did not expect Auburn to be good from beyond the arc this season. This negative does not come as a surprise. The Tigers are a cool 29% through eight games, last in the SEC.

It's not about "making the adjustment," or "figuring it out." Auburn doesn't have shooters. Plain and simple. That's not hating, it's just reality. The hope is that they've hit their floor and start to work their way up as the season goes on. Finding a rhythm late is the most important thing. If it takes a while for Auburn to start shooting at an average clip, so be it. Even if that means settling down from beyond the arc and pulling the trigger less, that's fine too. It's all about selecting the best shots.

If they even get to average (about 33.7%), that helps things out tremendously.

Johni Broome's offense

Broome has taken the second-most shots on the team through eighth games (72) and has the seventh best field goal percentage (41.7%). That's not good for a guy that's 6-foot-10. In the four games he eclipsed double-digit field goal attempts, only once did he surpass 50% shooting.

What Broome has brought to the table this season has been valuable, don't get me wrong - he's the best offensive rebounder the Tigers have, and easily one of the best shot-blocking bigs in the nation. He had eight blocks against St. Louis, the best offense Auburn has played up until this point.

We're all about efficiency here. Putting the ball in the basket as often as possible with the possessions earned is the named of the game.

This is not a call to reduce Broome's minutes or to say he's a bad player - by no means. Everyone has their own skillset.

We just need to see him find a rhythm in the post.