Davion Mitchell Transferring - What Does it Mean for Auburn Basketball?

Yesterday, the Auburn basketball team got a bit of news.

Davion Mitchell will be transferring away from the program after a freshman season in which he helped Auburn win its first SEC Championship in nineteen years. Mitchell averaged 3.7 ppg and 1.9 apg in just over seventeen minutes of playing time each game. He became one of the first guys off the bench alongside Malik Dunbar when Jared Harper would take an early breather.

Mitchell’s defense was one of of the bright spots for the Tigers, as he usually took on the opposition’s top offensive player when he came onto the floor, and he played tenaciously in his minutes. His offensive game needed work, as he hit double-digits just twice this year (vs George Mason and vs UConn), and he was usually good for a palming turnover or for an inadvertent foot on the end line. Frustrating at times, he provided a good spark for Auburn when he entered the game.

Auburn was going to be in wonderful shape in terms of a full roster once next season began, and they’ll still be in a really good spot at the guard position with Samir Doughty coming in. This doesn’t seem as if there’s any sort of ill will from either side in the transfer decision, as many of the current players on the team tweeted best wishes to Mitchell when the news broke.

It seems as if he may have seen the writing on the wall with Doughty’s eligibility for the 2018-19 season. Doughty is a more seasoned offensive player, and the drop-off from Harper to Doughty will be less than it was with Harper to Mitchell. The roster’s still going to be very full for this upcoming season, especially if Austin Wiley and Mustapha Heron stick around. Add in Doughty and Danjel Purifoy, along with returning players in Bryce Brown, Harper, Desean Murray, Anfernee McLemore, Horace Spencer, and Malik Dunbar, and Auburn’s going to have a deep and talented group.

Good luck to Davion Mitchell wherever he lands!