Former Texas forward and five-star recruit Dillon Mitchell had nothing but nice things to say following his visit to Auburn last week. Despite the optimistic words, Mitchell ultimately chose to take his talents further north, as he committed to the University of Cincinnati on Friday.
The former Longhorn reportedly had the Bearcats, Tigers, and his Miami Hurricanes in his top 3, but chose “Cincy” after his visit to the campus earlier this week. The failure to real in another transfer target continued a disappointing offseason trend for Bruce Pearl’s Tigers. Since landing Furman guard JP Pegues, Auburn has missed out on reported targets Achor Achor, Duke Miles, and some others.
The transfer portal dismay did end briefly on Friday with news that Pearl and company landed SMU forward Ja’Heim Hudson to sure up the front court. While Hudson doesn’t offer the clear upside of Mitchell, he is a very nice piece the Tigers can add to a front court rotation featuring star Johni Broome and up-and-comer Chaney Johnson.
As for Mitchell, the junior will join a Cincinnati roster that ended last season in free fall after early NCAA Tournament hopes. The Bearcats are extremely guard reliant, giving Mitchell a more direct path to playing time, and star power opportunity, than he would have had on the Plains.
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