Ohio State junior E.J. Liddell is one of twenty names announced Thursday on the 2022 Karl Malone Award preseason watch list. The award has been around for eight years and is awarded annually to the Division I basketball player judged to be the best forward in the game. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
Liddell took great strides in his game last season with significant increases in minutes, points, and other key stats. He was technically Ohio States’s second-leading scorer at 16.2 points per game, just behind the departed Duane Washington who averaged 16. 4 points per contest. You would be hard-pressed to not consider Liddell as the team’s MVP from last season as a first-team All-Big Ten performer.
The Belleville, Illinois product flirted with leaving early for the NBA last season but ultimately decided to come back for at least one more year as a Buckeyes. He has already expanded his outside game and conditioning, and we can’t wait to see what improvements he’s made with his game over this past offseason.
👀⭐️ @EasyE2432 has been named to the @HoopHall Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award Watchlist!
🔗: https://t.co/MDqCwbd07J#Team123 #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/xWih6Xgey0
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) October 21, 2021
As the season progresses, the watch list will be narrowed to 10 followed by five finalists in late February. Then, in March, the five finalists will be presented to Karl Malone and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee where a winner will be chosen.
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