Bruce Pearl has had the pleasure of coaching some very talented players during his time.
It appears that Pearl has a special set of talent on his hands this season with the Auburn Tigers, a team that was significantly lacking said talent before Pearl arrived on The Plains.
Jon Rothstein had Bruce Pearl on his podcast “College Hoops Daily” and asked if Jabari Smith is the most talented player Pearl has ever coached.
Bruce Pearl: Jabari is the best I’ve ever coached… he was up at six o’clock, five days a week in high school, for three years with his coach. When everyone else wasn’t out of bed yet… he’s put himself in this position to be successful. He is as good of a jump shooter that I’ve seen in college basketball in a long, long time. He’s also been a great teammate. By the way, he’s still only eighteen… Jabari is loving his time at Auburn, and he’s only getting bigger, stronger, and better, and yes, he is the focal point of what we do.
Smith is currently averaging 16.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 44.8% from the floor and 45.6% from three. He has been projected to go first overall according to some NBA mock drafts.
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