Tag: Anfernee McLemore

Chuma Okeke starring for Orlando Magic, surprising no one

Chuma Okeke is getting his chance and now shining for the Orlando Magic after sitting out all of last season with an injury.

Things were going quite well for Chuma Okeke and the Auburn Tigers in spring 2019.

The Tigers defeated Tennessee 84-64 to win their first SEC Tournament championship in 34 years thanks in large part to 18 points, 3 steals, and 13 rebounds from Okeke. His NBA draft stock was surging and all signs indicated that he would be Auburn’s next lottery pick.

Auburn entered the 2019 NCAA Tournament as the No.5 seed in the Midwest region. After the Tigers narrowly escaped defeat at the hands of New Mexico State it appeared to many that their road to the Final Four would be near impossible with 4-seed Kansas, 1-seed North Carolina, and 2-seed Kentucky standing in their way.

The morning that Auburn faced off against Kansas in the second round of the tournament there were three perfect brackets remaining. Unfortunately for one of those brackets, the Tigers couldn’t miss and Kansas fell 89-75 thus ruining that individual’s perfect bracket.

The Jayhawks season came to an abrupt end at the hands of Bryce Brown, Jared Harper, and Okeke. Kansas head coach Bill Self struggled to scheme around the Tigers’ sharpshooting point guard duo in Brown and Harper who combined for 43 points, 3 rebounds, and 8 assists against the Jayhawks. It was a futile effort on Self’s part as Auburn’s offensive firepower surged through Okeke who was averaging 12.5 points, 3.5 steals, and 5 rebounds per game.

As the Tigers headed into the Sweet Sixteen to take on North Carolina there was one perfect bracket remaining. The bracket belonged to 40-year-old neuropsychologist Gregg Nigl who had managed to correctly pick 49 games in a row. His bracket would have been busted by Auburn’s victory over North Carolina, but it was the Purdue Boilermakers thrilling overtime win over Tennessee that occurred first.

I watched the Auburn vs North Carolina game with my father. With 8:08 remaining in the second half we knew Auburn was up big, but had somehow lost at the same time. Okeke collided with UNC’s Cameron Johnson beneath the basket before falling hard to the floor. I don’t remember the fall, I just remember Okeke screaming while grabbing his knee before he was escorted to the locker room and taken for x-rays.

Okeke exited the game with 20 points, 2 steals, and 11 rebounds. I knew then that was the last time we’d see Okeke play in an Auburn uniform.

The Tigers went on to defeat Kentucky in the Elite Eight to advance to the first Final Four in program history. I vividly remember shots of Anfernee McLemore shooting free throws against Virginia and mouthing to himself, “do it for Chuma.” The Tigers fell to Virginia in Minneapolis, but the benchmark for success within Auburn basketball was officially set and Chuma Okeke was an integral part of it.

As the dust of the NCAA Tournament had settled and the NBA Draft drew closer, it was apparent that Okeke’s torn ACL would hurt his chances at being a lottery pick. The Orlando Magic knew exactly what type of player they would get in Okeke and took him 16th overall in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft.

ESPN analyst Mike Schmitz announced that it was, “the steal of the draft.”

And boy was he right. After a one year stint with Orlando’s G-league affiliate in Lakeland, the Orlando Magic announced that they had officially signed Okeke. In the last five games Okeke has recorded a total of 79 points (22-point career high vs Portland), 6 steals, and 29 rebounds (10-rebound career high vs New Orleans). The Magic have gone 3-2 in those five games proving Okeke as a catalyst for success at the professional level.

He’s back to where he was before that tragic fall in the second half against North Carolina. For Okeke the road to where he is now has consisted of two years of rehab, perseverance, and patience. The opportunity that Chuma Okeke has worked and prayed for is now.

Welcome back big Chum!

Auburn basketball: Why JT Thor is a perfect fit on the Plains

Auburn freshman JT Thor will be a force for the Tigers.

Auburn freshman forward JT Thor has the kind of growth mindset that fits perfectly in Bruce Pearl’s program. It’s a mentality that harks back to the 2017 and 2018 teams who found great success when they were dramatically underestimated.

The rising star discussed a few of his favorite things as well as his playing career, both past and present, with AuburnTigers.com’s Greg Ostendorf earlier this week.

Here’s a few quick facts:

  • Thor’s favorite movie is Scarface
  • He loves his mom’s cooking
  • He intends to major in Business Marketing
  • Thor models his game after Kevin Durant and says the 31-year old Nets forward was an inspiration to him growing up
  • Yes, his favorite Marvel character is Thor not just because they share the same name, but because they, “can both drop the hammer. That thunderous dunk.”

Another interesting fact is that he grew up in Alaska before eventually moving to Norcross, Georgia. He wants everyone to know that in Alaska it does not snow there every single day and that while the winters are brutal the summers are actually very sunny and warm.

So, how does a kid who was born in Nebraska and raised in Alaska end up at Auburn?

According to him it all started on February 8, 2020 when the four star recruit attended the LSU vs Auburn basketball game on his first unofficial visit.

“They (Auburn) were down by 20, and they came back and won the game. The whole time I was on the visit, it just opened my eyes. It wasn’t even an official visit yet. But as soon as I came here, it was like “I think I want to be here.” It made me want to come on another visit, so I came to the game vs. Texas A&M. They lost, but after that, I was ready to plan my official and commit. This is where I wanted to be. It’s a good environment, a family-type environment that I want to be in.”

Thor says he’s ready to grow as a player under Bruce Pearl’s leadership. He cites Chuma Okeke, Isaac Okoro, and Tobias Harris (Tennessee) as models for his own playing potential under Coach Pearl. The freshman is ready to make an impact on both sides of the court and believes the 2020 class is one of the best in the country.

After losing six starters this spring (5 seniors and 1 lottery pick) preseason talking heads aren’t giving Auburn much love going in to the 2020-2021 basketball season. It’s nothing new for Coach Pearl and Auburn. JT Thor just arrived on campus and he already knows,

“I feel like we’re all underdogs. Everybody is an underdog, and we’re coming in with a chip on our shoulder. People are sleeping on us.”

This team is young, but they’re worth watching out for.

 

Anfernee McLemore discusses recruitment, Final Four, post-basketball career, and more

The former Auburn forward discusses his recruiting and playing in the Final Four.

Former Auburn basketball standout Anfernee McLemore appeared Monday on The JBoy Show to discuss everything from his recruitment to his professional career. Here’s what the former Auburn forward had to say:

On academics:

If you saw broadcasters’ conversations come to a lull during basketball season then you probably heard that McLemore was accepted to MIT. Academics were extremely important to McLemore who grew up in a military family. He credits his mother for instilling that academic background in him at an early age.

What brought him to Auburn:

After visiting multiple schools in the northern U.S. and even Mississippi State none offered the welcoming environment that McLemore yearned for.  He said, “what every recruit looks for as far as what college they want to go to is a place that feels like home.” No other coach made their school feel more at home than Bruce Pearl he added.

On being a part of the Final Four: 

“I like to say I was in the right place at the right time.”

No team in college basketball had bigger chips on their shoulders than the 2018-2019 Auburn basketball team. Prolific point guards Bryce Brown and Jared Harper were drastically overlooked. McLemore cites that coming from a smaller high school created the chip on his shoulder. That Final Four team was the embodiment of grit and determination.

His favorite Final Four run memory?

McLemore’s favorite memory on the Final Four run came from the New Mexico State game. Yeah, that same game where Auburn won by one point after a missed three-point attempt. The entire team was so disappointed in the locker room and they conveyed to each other that they would have to put their skills into overdrive to compete against Kansas in the next game. “You could hear a pin drop,” was his description of that locker room, a stark difference from the post game celebrations we saw in the Tigers’ next three victories.

On his three-point shooting:

McLemore was recruited as a 6’7 center. When he was a freshman he was told that he would need to improve his outside shooting to be a more effective player. Pearl’s confidence and expectation of him is what he says was the key to his improvement during his playing career.

Future plans:

Today McLemore is a wealth manager at Regions Bank in Birmingham and he’s very excited about the future of his professional career. He also encourages fans to check out his YouTube channel if you want to hear stories from the man himself.

Which player on the roster we should buy stock in?

According to McLemore we need to buy stock in Jaylin Williams NOW. McLemore describes Williams as, “one of the most talented freshmen I’ve seen in my life.” Wow, and with a year of experience the sky is the limit for the upcoming sophomore.

Find the full interview here.

Andy Burcham talks Bruce Pearl, remembers Rod Bramblett in interview

The Voice of the Auburn Tigers talks about basketball’s rise under Bruce Pearl and his late radio partner Rod Bramblett.

Andy Burcham sat down with Jason Caldwell of Inside the Auburn Tigers for a six-part interview. The two discuss Bruce Pearl’s success and remember the late Rod Bramblett.

What “it” factor does Burcham see in Pearl?

Burcham says,

“For one thing it’s authentic. His enthusiasm, his love for his players, his love for Tennessee when he was there, southern Indiana you know when he won a national championship there, and his love for Auburn is unique and authentic”

https://twitter.com/JoshVitale/status/1185022261423759360?s=20

Burcham also describes Pearl as being a tough coach who gains the respect of his players. Coach Pearl has made his mission statement at Auburn known and his players understand the biggest goal is to get better.

“His love for them is not just as basketball players at Auburn.”

Burcham uses Anfernee McLemore as an example. McLemore’s fiancee gave birth to his son right after the South Alabama game. Pearl helped arrange for McLemore to fly back to Auburn with AD Allen Greene so that he could get back quicker.

In the last three years, Pearl has taken Auburn basketball to three consecutive 25-win seasons, a regular season SEC championship, an SEC Tournament championship and a Final Four appearance. Auburn basketball was a complete mess when Bruce Pearl arrived. Burcham describes the transformation as “one of the more remarkable stories in Auburn athletic history.”

Remembering Rod Bramblett:

Bramblett passed away right before Auburn baseball played Georgia Tech in the NCAA Regionals. Burcham was not in the broadcast booth. When the Tigers punched their ticket to their first Super Regional since 1999, Burcham knew he had to go. This was history.

They would face off against North Carolina, a team who had never lost in a Super Regional.

The Tigers forced the Tar Heels to a three game series. In the final game Auburn scored 13 runs in the first inning. Burcham remembers thinking, “don’t let this team be the team that blows a 13 run lead.”

Auburn held on and advanced to the College World Series for the first time since 1997. As the last pitch was thrown Burcham remained seated in the broadcast booth. Usually at this moment he’d be down on the field for post game coverage while Rod stayed in the booth to begin the post game show.

Baseball was what bonded the two together. Rod was all he could think about in that moment. In the two minutes between the last pitch and the post game show Burcham recalls, “I got really emotional. I had time to get emotional and gather my senses and then send it down to Paul.”

And when the Tigers finally made it to Omaha Burcham recalls telling Kirk Sampson, “Rod would love this.”

He sure would have.