The Auburn Tigers may boast 10 new additions on this year’s roster, but one of the most productive players from last season’s Final Four team has remained present in the minds of fans.
Former Auburn guard/forward Chad Baker-Mazara transferred to USC over the offseason after two seasons on the Plains, but despite moving across the country and out of the SEC, he has kept active on social media since departing from the Tigers.
Baker-Mazara posted a tweet on X last week, complimenting his new squad’s work ethic, but a significant portion of the Auburn corner of social media thought it was a dig at the Tigers.
“Man I’m blessed to be (with) a bunch of guys that care bout winning!!” Baker-Mazara wrote on X.
Man i’m blessed to be w a bunch of guys that care bout winning!!
— Chad Baker-Mazara (@ChadBaker2700) November 4, 2025
The tweet garnered over 1.2 million views and almost 300 replies and reposts, which were almost all Auburn fans expressing their confusion and displeasure with him. One fan even replied with a video of him running off the court after being ejected in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament against Yale.
Fight on! pic.twitter.com/SHITRu0cHO
— SPORTS BY BROOKS FOREVER (@LonelyTalegater) November 4, 2025
Baker-Mazara was asked about the tweet on Sunday evening after USC’s win over Manhattan, and he made sure to clear up any misconceptions and clarify his intention in the post.
“A lot of Auburn folks, they’ve got stuff twisted. I can’t go much into detail, but I’m past that. I’m just praising my boys now,” Baker-Mazara said. “Nothing to do – past that, that’s in the past. I always want them to do good. My boys are on that team… the coaching staff, they believed in me. They took a kid out of JUCO and gave him an opportunity, and because of them I’m here today.”
“Will I have some funny comments to say? Yeah, but the boys know – before I say anything or do anything on Twitter, I’ll text Tahaad (Pettiford) or my other boys, ‘hey, y’all know I’m messing around. I’m bored.’ So yeah, I’m never going to throw any shots. People are trying to twist my words and stuff like that,” Baker-Mazara continued. “They’re trying to have fun with it and then they get mad at me because I’m trying to have fun with it, too.”
Baker-Mazara has also posted a few questionable stories on Instagram in the past few weeks that ruffled some feathers from Auburn fans. For example, minutes after Bruce Pearl announced his retirement, the former Tiger had some interesting words regarding a possible reason why he transferred.
“Oh now ya understand,” he wrote.
Chad Baker-Mazara 15 mins ago on his Instagram story:
“Oh now ya understand” pic.twitter.com/7C9Z8cQp9n
— Gunner Norene (@norene_gunner10) September 22, 2025
Fans blasted Baker-Mazara on all platforms after he posted that, claiming that he didn’t actually know Pearl was planning to retire and assuming he was lying.
Another example is when USC was placed higher than Auburn in the preseason KenPom rankings, which Baker-Mazara then reposted on instagram with an edgy caption that once again made Auburn fans question him.
However, despite the multiple social media controversies or presumed targets toward the Tigers, Baker-Mazara says that was never his intent behind them.
“So it’s okay. I’m never going to throw a shot at Auburn, for real,” he said.
