<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>UPDATE | New hoops commit Trayvon Reed tells <a href="https://twitter.com/BMattAU">@BMattAU</a>: ‘I thought I threw my life away.’ <a href="http://t.co/LnJ0EhYuvS">http://t.co/LnJ0EhYuvS</a> <a href="http://t.co/URDUaOtocw">pic.twitter.com/URDUaOtocw</a></p>— Jay G. Tate (@JayGTate) <a href="https://twitter.com/JayGTate/statuses/505095455336706049">August 28, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Just when you think things may have slowed down a bit for Auburn basketball after the whirlwind of last weekend, Bruce Pearl does it again. Former Maryland signee Trayvon Reed has committed to Auburn. Reed currently shows up as the #11 Center of the 2014 recruiting class according to 247sports and the 9th best prior to his signing with Maryland. According to Jeff Goodman of ESPN, Reed "will attend Elevate Academy in Florida this semester to qualify, then join Auburn in December." For those playing at home, this means Reed will be eligible for most of this current basketball season. Combined with Cinmeon Bowers, this gives Auburn a good bit of size up front.
While I'm excited about the addition of a big man that will be almost immediately eligible, we can't ignore the "former signee" part. Reed was a part of Maryland's great recruiting class from this past season, but was dismissed prior to enrolling due to being "charged with two counts of second-degree assault, including one of a police officer, as well as theft under $100 and resisting arrest." The charges look bad and are bad, though the details show it to be a relatively minor incident. Still, he was confronted for stealing "an ice cream bar and two candy bars" according to the report quoted in the linked Testudo Times article. Hopefully this experience taught Reed a valuable lesson, but I know this is going to be spun as Auburn taking thugs, and I don't care for that part. I don't know Trayvon Reed so I have no clue to the type of person he is. I can only hope that this event was not indicative of his overall character.
According to al.com, Reed is already doing community service on his own prior to his 15 September court date regarding the charges. The outcome of that court date is obviously still to be determined, so I guess there's still a chance Reed does not enroll at Auburn. No other outlets seem to be worried about that, though, so maybe there's more information out there I have yet to locate regarding his situation.
If he does enroll and is able to play immediately in January, he will add much-needed size to Auburn's lineup and could potentially turn Auburn into an immediate tournament contender. The first SEC football game of the season kicked off minutes ago and we're talking about Auburn basketball. It's still amazing what Coach Pearl is putting together.