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2-sport star Tre Donaldson commits to Auburn

Jeffrey Leeby:Jeffrey Lee•08/19/21•

JLeeAULive

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Auburn has landed a commitment from two-sport star Tre Donaldson.

Donaldson, a standout in both basketball and football at FSU School in Tallahassee, Fla., committed to Auburn on Thursday over offers from Florida, Florida State, Alabama, Georgia Tech and Ole Miss, among others.

“It feels great to be going to Auburn,” Donaldson said. “It’s a weight off my shoulders. It’s been tough on me trying to make the right decision, so it’s a big relief now. I couldn’t be happier.”

Donaldson, a point guard in basketball and safety in football, plans to play both sports at Auburn. Basketball, however, likely will be his primary focus.

NBA opportunity for Donaldson

Donaldson has been heavily recruited by Bruce Pearl to be Auburn’s point guard of the future. Pearl’s history with putting point guards in the NBA – most recently Jared Harper and Sharife Cooper – was a big selling point to Donaldson.

“Coach Pearl’s track record with guards and how he puts them in the NBA is big for me,” Donaldson said. “You do this for a lot of reasons, but playing in the league is one of the main ones.”

Trusting Pearl and his staff to reach the goal is easy for Donaldson.

“The relationship and trust I have with the staff is great,” Donaldson said. “Trust is a big thing for me and they have been honest with me, never have they lied to me. They have kept it 100 and never sugarcoated it with me, and that means a lot to me and my family.”

Relationships key for Donaldson

Donaldson developed strong bonds with Pearl and assistant Wes Flanigan.

“Coach Pearl is just a great guy and he loves Auburn so much,” Donaldson said. “He’s also so humble. You will see him eating lunch in the cafeteria or just walking around campus. As a coach, his energy and charisma really stands out. He’s a big energy guy.

“And Coach Wes is a big, big reason why I chose Auburn. He’s just a great guy and a great coach. He’s been my main recruiter and he’s the reason why I first wanted to go to Auburn. He was the first to notice that I’m not just a football player.”

While Donaldson plans to play both sports at Auburn, it’s not set in stone. He’s considering focusing on basketball even though he’d be a welcomed addition to Auburn’s football team. Donaldson also has a relationship with defensive coordinator/safeties coach Derek Mason.

Football, basketball or both?

Should he play football and basketball, Donaldson would count only toward the football scholarship numbers (25 per class/85 total). Should he decide only to play basketball, he would count toward basketball’s total of 13 scholarships.

“There’s a possibility that I won’t play (football),” Donaldson said. “We’ll see.”

Donaldson plans to be in Auburn on Sunday for Pearl’s Elite Camp. His younger teammate, Anthony Robinson, also will be there and participate in the camp.

“I will definitely be there,” Donaldson said. “I won’t be participating, but I’ll be there for sure.”

In 19 games as a junior, Donaldson, who is 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds, averaged 11.1 points, 3.6 assists and two steals per game.

Donaldson is the 10th commitment in Auburn’s 2022 football class and first in the ’22 basketball class.

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