How Bruce Pearl built Auburn into a true title contender

A cascade of incoming players who fit Pearl’s style has ensued, and each major contributing player had a connection.Here is a look at how Pearl built this title-contending team.Jabari Smith, freshman, 6-foot-10, Sandy Creek HS (Georgia), 15.7 PPG, 6.3 RPG: Pearl said Smith was an early-morning workout player, so Pearl said he and assistant Ira Bowman were in the gym as much as possible. "And he wanted to win."K.D. Johnson, sophomore, 6-foot, Hargrave Military (Georgia), 13.1 PPG, 41 steals: Pearl said the Tigers were in on Johnson from his sophomore year of high school. A year later, Bruce Pearl said his son let him know that Green Jr. was leaving Eastern Kentucky and was in the portal after averaging 15.8 points and five assists. "We rekindled the relationship," he said.Allen Flanigan, junior, 6-foot-6, Jr., Parkview Magnet HS (Arkansas), 7.9 PPG, 3.7 RPG: Allen’s father, Wes Flanigan, is on the Auburn staff, and Pearl said you cannot make a mistake with an assistant’s son. Flanigan was the best player in Arkansas, and Pearl had watched him a lot, but it wasn’t until the summer in advance of Flanigan's senior year that Pearl said he was willing to sign his "dear friend’s son." You don’t want to take an assistant’s son and not play him, but that isn't the case at all with Flanigan. It gives us the best big guard/point forward in the country."Devan Cambridge, junior, 6-foot-6, Hillcrest Prep (Arizona), 6.2 PPG, 3.1 RPG: This recruitment was all about relationships, as Pearl said Cambridge had a connection with Sharife Cooper.