How one rotation change could make a lot of difference for Auburn
By playing Kevin Overton at point guard, Auburn might set off a chain reaction of moves that make sense Tuesday night vs. Vanderbilt.
AUBURN — Tahaad Pettiford plays a ton for Auburn.
In fact, during SEC play, Pettiford is on the floor 82.2% of the time. That’s second on the team, only behind Keyshawn Hall (84.7%) and 12th in the entire conference.
The reasons for playing Pettiford that much are obvious. Despite his shooting struggles this season, Auburn’s lone returner from last season leads the team in plus/minus (+144) and on/off net rating (+11.7). The Tigers’ defensive rating when he’s on the court ranks No. 2 on the team, and the offensive turnover rate ranks No. 1.
When freshman point guard Kaden Magwood was taken out of Auburn’s rotation after an 0-2 start in SEC play, the coaching staff opted to replace him with former walk-on Blake Muschalek. In his first game in there, a blowout win over Arkansas, Muschalek was a +12 in plus/minus before garbage time and scored five points.
Since then, though, Muschalek’s plus/minus has dropped to -13 in SEC play. Auburn’s offensive rating and defensive rating are both at their worst among all rotation players when he’s on the floor. He hasn’t scored since the Arkansas game and has only taken five shots in those 38 minutes of action.
During Saturday’s home loss to Alabama, though, Auburn went with something different in the point guard minutes when Pettiford was on the bench: The Tigers turned to Kevin Overton, the veteran off-ball guard who is also playing nearly 80% of the available minutes in SEC games.
“I think it's just filling in the minutes that need to be filled,” Overton said Monday. “I don't know what exactly the coaches talked about for that to happen, but I appreciate it. I just think that lets me know that I'm somebody that's trusted on this team. I don't think it's necessarily hard or unnatural for me to play that position, just based on the way my whole life has went.
“So it was just filling those spots, and it worked out. I feel like, maybe we didn't win the game, but it wasn't something that was negative to the team.”
It wasn’t a negative — and it could turn into a chain reaction of positives for Auburn basketball as it heads into the final four weeks of the regular season. That starts Tuesday night at home in a quick turnaround game against top-20 Vanderbilt.
In today’s Observer newsletter, let’s take a closer look at what all might be able to change for the Tigers with just one tweak to their rotation.
Strengthens a perimeter defense that needs it
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