Five predictions for Auburn basketball including NCAA Tournament

Auburn basketball won the regular-season SEC title last season. Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler left for the NBA. Auburn has a new recruit in the class of 2022 and returns two of their top three scorers.

Allen Flanigan has had a turbulent time at Auburn. He injured his right Achilles and missed the start of his junior season. Now he's more than a year removed from surgery and should be back to full strength.

K.D. Johnson is the team's leading scorer returning from last season. He shot 38.6% from the field and 29.0% on 3-point range last year.

Kessler was drafted by the NBA at No. 22 overall. Johni Broome was the defensive player of the year for the Ohio Valley Conference in 2021-22. Broomes will step in and replace the loss of Kessler.

Wendell Green Jr. was named a second-team, All-SEC guard in the preseason coaches poll. He could be even higher than that by season's end.

Auburn is a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The team is talented but doesn't have the star power. If the team makes it to the second round again, it would be a win.