One of Auburn’s vital pieces is set to return to the team for next season.
In a social media post, Auburn basketball posted a video Wednesday of guard Chad Baker-Mazara saying “My work is not yet finished” in Spanish before ending the video with a hearty “War Eagle.”
Baker-Mazara’s return is important for Auburn, as he finished the 2023-24 season in the top three of several major categories including points per game, three-point percentage, free-throw percentage, and rebounds. It is easy to say that having a player of his caliber is valuable, which is why Baker-Mazara plans to stick around for another season.
The news comes hours after guard [autotag]Tre Donaldson[/autotag] announced his intent to enter the transfer portal after spending two seasons on the Plains. Donaldson is the second player to declare for the portal, following [autotag]KD Johnson[/autotag]’s announcement last week.
Baker-Mazara’s first season on the Plains ended in controversy. In Auburn’s round of 64 game with Yale, Baker-Mazara was issued a flagrant 2 foul from officials after it was shown that he threw an elbow at a Yale player just four minutes into the game. The Tigers ultimately lost the game, with some feeling that his absence ultimately led to defeat.
Following the game, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl defended Baker-Mazara and said that Auburn fans need to be sensitive when it comes to his athletes making mistakes.
“I’ll tell the Auburn family, while I know you’re disappointed, if someone was messing with your son, you’d stand up for him,” Pearl said. “Stop messing with my son, I’m calling you out. I’m not having it.”
Baker-Mazara ended the year with 10.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.2 assists with an average of 21.7 minutes played per game.
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