Auburn has been recruiting for Shon Abaev for quite some time now.

The Tigers offered Abaev on May 19, 2023, and was his 11th offer at the time.

His recruitment has since blown up, but the fact that Bruce Pearl and Auburn were there early is meaningful to Abaev.

“Great hospitality since I’ve been here," Abaev said about Pearl. "He’s treated me and my family well. Even before I got here on a visit, he’s been treating me well for the past couple years now. He was one of the first high major coaches that was recruiting me before anyone else was. It’s a great place to be at. I’m loving it so far.

"It just shows that he always believed in me even before the noise started coming around my name. It’s just a piece in the factor that will help me make my decision.”

Abaev has gotten to know Pearl well off of the court, but he got to see him coaching up close on Friday at an Auburn practice. He liked what he saw.

“The way Coach Bruce coaches. How hard the team competes in practice," Abaev said. "They played a little scrimmage and went really hard in practice. That’s something I really like.”

Recently, Auburn has put wings such as Isaac Okoro and Chuma Okeke into the league. Abaev has taken note and thinks he could be next.

“You’ve got to see with his resume what kind of players he was able to put on to the next level," Abaev said. "Those players are the same type of players as me. That’s another piece I’m looking at, too.”

In addition to Auburn, Abaev has visited Dayton, Syracuse and USC and plans to visit Cincinnati, Maryland and Arkansas.

Abaev hasn't made a cut list and doesn't plan to. He doesn't have a decision date and will decide whenever he feels the time is right.

Will Auburn be there in the end for Abaev? He's hopeful it will be.

"It’s a great place to be at," Abaev said about Auburn.