Donaldson out, Baker-Mazara back as roster churns

Auburn's roster for the 2024-25 season is going to look much different.

Point guard Tre Donaldson on Wednesday morning announced via social media that he plans to enter the transfer portal after two seasons on the Plains. Later in the day, wing Chad Baker-Mazara made an announcement that he'd be back for another season inside Neville Arena.

Baker-Mazara's message Wednesday, delivered in Spanish, was simple: "My work here is not done. I’m returning.”

Baker-Mazara was a revelation during his first season at Auburn, averaging 10 points per game and sharing the team lead (with Denver Jones) in three-point shooting at 41.8 percent. He endeared himself to Auburn supporters with a flamboyant style of play that included dunks, steals, creative drives and plenty of trash talking — much of it in his native tongue.

He started the final nine games of the season after coach Bruce Pearl decided to begin using senior Chris Moore as a substitute.

Baker-Mazara's season ended on a sour note, however, when he was disqualified from the Tigers' shocking NCAA Tournament loss to Yale after picking up a Flagrant 2 technical foul. He was judged to have sought injury or harm of a Yale player after elbowing him in the sternum as the two jogged together during a transition sequence.

Without Baker-Mazara, the team's best player in teams of solo shot creation, the Tigers struggled to score — particularly during the final seven minutes. Yale won the game by two points.

Donaldson, signed out of Tallahassee, Fla., two years ago, played in all 35 contests this past season and averaged 6.7 points per game. He made substantive improvement across the board in terms of shooting percentages — showing major increases from the free-throw line (up 23 points), two-point range (up 14 points) and three-point range (up one point).

He started 10 games in a platoon with freshman Aden Holloway. Donaldson is the second Auburn player to announce plans to leave via the portal; shooting guard KD Johnson hit the portal last weekend.

Auburn currently is hosting Jaylen "J.P" Pegues from Furman University — one of the most coveted point guards in the portal. The team also is seeking a visit from Washington State point guard Myles Rice, who played high school ball with former Auburn forward Jabari Smith and who entered the transfer portal a few days ago.