Auburn’s frontcourt just got a little thinner - and a little more complicated. Reserve center Emeka Opurum is out for the season with a medical issue, and while he wasn’t a major part of the Tigers’ rotation, his absence still matters, especially behind the scenes.
Opurum had logged just 15 total minutes against high-major opponents this season, so from a game-to-game standpoint, Auburn’s rotation won’t need a major overhaul. But this isn’t just about games - it’s about practice, depth, and flexibility. And as assistant coach Steven Pearl pointed out after Auburn’s recent win over Chattanooga, losing a true center, even one who doesn’t play much, can shift how a team prepares during the week.
That’s where things get tricky. Opurum was the only traditional center on the roster.
Auburn’s starting big man, 6-foot-9 KeShawn Murphy, is more of a stretch forward than a classic post presence. Without Opurum, Auburn now has to get creative with how it handles size and matchups - especially with SEC play looming and a top-10 showdown against Purdue coming up this weekend.
Bruce Pearl and his staff are already exploring options. The Tigers are open to adding a player mid-season - possibly from the JUCO ranks - but there are some logistical hurdles.
Auburn is currently maxed out at 13 scholarships. A few walk-ons have already been elevated to scholarship status, filling the last available spots.
So even if the coaching staff finds a big man who could help right away, they’d need a workaround to make it happen.
And NCAA rules don’t offer much flexibility here. Because Opurum’s injury occurred after the season began, Auburn can’t open up a new scholarship slot under the medical redshirt rule.
As Pearl put it, “We can't just kick someone off and bring someone else in, even if it's a medical redshirt situation.” The only way a team can replace an injured player during the season is if the injury happened before the first game.
Otherwise, that roster spot is locked in.
That’s led to some reflection within the program. Pearl noted that he didn’t construct this year’s roster - his son Steven did - but moving forward, the coaching staff may consider keeping a scholarship open in case of mid-season attrition. It’s a lesson learned the hard way, and one that could influence how Auburn builds its roster in the future.
For now, Auburn is navigating a tight window. Adding a player mid-season is possible, especially if it’s a graduate transfer or a JUCO product, both of whom can be immediately eligible.
Auburn has done it before - most notably when Austin Wiley reclassified and joined the team partway through the 2016-17 season. But finding the right player, and making the scholarship math work, is a challenge.
The Tigers already underwent a frontcourt overhaul this past offseason. Johni Broome and Dylan Cardwell both exhausted their eligibility, and while there was some hope that Chaney Johnson might get another year due to his Division II background, that didn’t pan out.
Auburn also lost 6-foot-9 forward Addarin Scott, a former JUCO transfer who redshirted last season but entered the portal in the offseason. He would’ve been a perfect fit for the current situation - experienced, already in the system, and physically ready.
But he’s no longer an option.
So Auburn moves forward with what it has - a talented roster, but one that’s now a bit undersized and short on depth in the paint. That’ll be put to the test Saturday in Indianapolis, when the No.
21 Tigers face off against No. 6 Purdue, their fourth top-10 opponent of the season.
Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. CST on Peacock.
It’s a big moment for Auburn, and while the loss of a reserve center might not make headlines, it’s the kind of roster wrinkle that can have ripple effects. Practice rotations shift.
Foul trouble becomes riskier. And the margin for error in the frontcourt just got a little smaller.