Highly-touted freshman Anthony Thompson shoots during recent workouts in Columbus. The buzz, for the first time in a while, is Buckeye basketball. (Press Pros Feature Photos)
Ohio State basketball is buzzing right now thanks to a pair of 5-star freshman who might not even have to be instant stars for Jake Diebler’s team to take off this winter.
Columbus, OH — Don’t look now, but Jake Diebler may have done the impossible.
No, not get Ohio State men’s basketball into the NCAA Tournament. He did that last spring, and it should be a baseline expectation.
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No, not winning the Big Ten, either, since he hasn’t actually done that (and it has been done nearly two dozen times before).
The near miracle might be more elusive — as you know if you’ve spent much time in the capital city — and yet it has happened. Diebler has people talking about Ohio State mens’ basketball in July!
The trick is unlikely, especially given the unceremonious way the Buckeyes were dumped out of the Big Dance by TCU in March, but it’s been turned through an old-fashioned manner…recruiting.
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Yes, the biggest reason Buckeye basketball is being discussed less than two weeks before Big Ten Football Media Days in Chicago is how Diebler constructed his roster.
Although he did not make the big splash in the transfer portal some fans wanted, he did bring in a handful of veterans who look like they will fill valuable roles.
And the hope is he didn’t need a big-ticket signing in April thanks to securing the signature of Anthony Thompson last fall. That effort got another potential boost last month when the program announced LJ Smith would graduate a year early and join the Buckeyes for this season rather than do another year of prep school.
Those two were the main attraction this week when Diebler let the communications staff open the doors to practice for the fifth time this summer, and many in attendance walked away impressed with a group that looks bigger and deeper.
Of course, the question must be asked: Is this a heat-dome-induced mirage? Could the same urge for optimism that led some of us to expect the Cincinnati Reds to look like a competent baseball team in the spring lead us astray now?
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Yes, certainly that is possible. Much stranger things have happened than Ohio State playing mediocre basketball in a given winter.
But much like hope springs eternal in spring training, a little excitement for a college basketball team never hurt anyone in the summer (especially if they never bothered to have any feelings about that sport at all this time of year).
There’s also the matter of pre-existing expectations.
I can’t honestly say I know what I would think of seeing Anthony Thompson in the practice gym if I didn’t know he was a five-star prospect. Truth is, we’ll never know because he is one.
Early addition LJ Smith has the talented to become a deluxe complimentary player with time and patience.
Thompson arrived in Columbus with the blessing and curse of high expectations, and we’ll start finding out in a few months if they were justified.
For now, early returns are positive.
Thompson, a 6-9 forward originally from Lebanon who says he now weighs about 219 pounds, certainly passes the look test.
He’s big, long and agile. He moves gracefully between the paint and the perimeter, though like many big guys these days he seems to be more comfortable outside.
Thompson said Thursday morning he’s been able to shoot since he started playing basketball, so he’s not a big guy moonlighting on the outside so much as one looking to let the rest of his game grow into his body so he can get more comfortable in the post.
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That starts with defending the rim, something Ohio State did not do well last season. It won’t be all on Thompson to fix that deficiency, but if he is the starting small forward it would mean the Buckeyes have a lineup more built to mirror the size they saw throughout the Big Ten last season.
Thompson also said Thursday he’s working on his perimeter defense, something that would assure he can stay on the floor in all situations.
“I think it’s really versatile,” Thompson replied when asked to describe his game. “I can do everything on the court that my coach needs me to. I think I can guard any position and score from anywhere on the court.”
That would be ideal as Diebler tries to build a more cohesive team than he had last season when it seemed like the parts didn’t always fit together optimally. Many were not exactly multidimensional, so squeezing the most out of each player was more of a challenge than maybe it had to be.
“It’s something I think I’ve earned, and I’ve been able to embrace them and attack them every day,” Thompson said of high expectations.
Smith, who was a five-star prospect in the class of 2027 before reclassifying to ’26, does not stand out from the crowd (on the basketball floor) like Thompson. He’s listed at 6-4, 180, but size is not as much his thing.
What should fans expect from him?
“They should expect buckets,” Smith said, but that’s not all.
“And to be creative for myself and my teammates. Defensive ability. Rebounding. Just being a great teammate.”
Amare Bynum quick ascent during the second half.of his freshman season has created high expectations for his second season as a Buckeye.
Smith is reputed as an offensive weapon, a player who can hit the outside shot and set up his teammates. How soon he gets to show if he can do that remains to be seen as Diebler has sharp-shooting junior combo guard John Mobley Jr. returning at one spot in the backcourt and added three transfers with college experience.
Justin Pippen, Scottie’s son and late of Cal-Berkeley, is in line to be the starting point guard while Jimmie Williams (Duquesne) and Curtis Givens III (Memphis) are likely to come off the bench.
If they do, that would be a luxury since Williams averaged more than 15 points per game for the Dukes last season and Givens added 9.4 for the Tigers. (Adding other people’s starters to your bench would seem to be a sign of a healthy roster.)
Smith arrived later than the other newcomers this summer, and he admitted his body is still catching up from its introduction to a college weight room.
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But Diebler looks for him to present a different look — a bigger 2 or 3 guard — when he wants one this season.
So while Thompson is expected to be a main part of the attack, Smith could be a change-up.
Truthfully, Smith’s contributions being muted this winter might not be a bad thing. In one of the best-case scenarios for this coming season, Pippen and Mobley gel in the backcourt and get competent relief from Givens and Williams.
As for Thompson, he could be the next one-and-done star for Ohio State basketball, following in the footsteps of D’Angelo Russell, Brice Sensabaugh and Malaki Branham (and Greg Oden, Mike Conley Jr., Kosta Koufos and B.J. Mullens before that), but he also might be a complementary player to Mobley and sophomore forward Amare Bynum.
That is a little far down the road, though.
For now, the curiosity is in the possibilities, the fact Diebler even reeled in such big fish — and that people are noticing now instead of after Thanksgiving.
“I like where we’re at right now,” the coach said. “I love the talent we have, I love the depth we have, I love the size we have. I think that’s a different component than where we’ve been the last couple years.”
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