The Ohio State basketball season came to an abrupt end because of the coronavirus measures put in place, so that leaves us no choice but to look ahead to next year. This season feels a lot like an unfinished story with some ups and downs, a little drama and a cliff-hanger, but that’s what we’re left with.
Part of the drama came after the season with the decisions of freshmen D.J. Carton and Alonzo Gaffney. But we also had a couple of veterans leave the team with the surprising transfer decision of Luther Muhammad, and the announcement to enter the NBA draft by Kaleb Wesson. Those have now been offset with the addition of graduate transfers Seth Towns, and Abel Porter. The program also got an undergraduate transfer decision from Bucknell’s Jimmy Sotos, but he won’t be available until the following season. That now puts the Buckeyes back to the thirteen scholarship limit — back where it needs to be for the 2020-2021 season.
We projected what the OSU roster would look like a few weeks ago, but with so many changes recently, it’s worth going through the exercise one more time. Let’s hope nothing else changes.
So here we go. Here’s the projected lineup for Ohio State basketball for the 2020-2021 season once again, way ahead of time, but with a ton of new information that came out of the blue.
Next … Ohio State likely starting five
The projected starters
Point Guard
C.J. Walker — Senior, 6-1, 195 lbs.
Walker added a steadying presence at the point guard spot, and he came into his own once the spotlight was all his. He adds experience and leadership, and he showed he’s also willing to take a scoring role as well. He finished with just 8.7 points per game on average, but he was in double figures his last six games, going for 11, 12, 15, 15, 15 and 14 points to end the year.
Small Forward/Shooting Guard
Seth Towns — Junior, 6-7, 215 lbs.
The addition of Towns is a big one because it allows Ohio State to be a team with more length at the two or three spot. I think the Buckeyes will go bigger with Towns’ ability to shoot at the guard spot and play Sueing on the wing. Despite his length, Towns has sneaky and slithery moves to penetrate into the lane and around the rim. And at 6-feet, 7-inches, he can get his shot off against smaller guys on the perimeter. He’s an instant scoring option that the coaching staff can probably plug right into the lineup.
Power Forward/Guard
Justice Sueing — Junior, 6-6, 210 lbs.
Don’t sleep on Sueing. I think Luther Muhammad moving on from the program opens up a starting spot for Sueing because Seth Towns can move to the two-guard spot and allow Seuing to play his natural position. He’s a guy that can create his own shot, will work hard for rebounds and score from multiple spots on the floor. He led Cal in scoring the last season he played in 2018-2019 for a reason.
Power Forward
Kyle Young — Senior, 6-6, 220 lbs.
Young’s career has been a bit snakebitten with injury. He dealt with a stress fracture, then bounced back to be a glue guy that does all the little things at the beginning of the year. Then he had to deal with appendicitis and a high ankle sprain that took him away from the court for much of the last part of the season. He should be back healthy in 2019-2020 though, and he’ll be a guy that does it all for Chris Holtmann’s team.
Power Forward
E.J. Liddell — Sophomore, 6-9, 270 lbs.
We’re making the call for Kaleb Wesson to dive headfirst into the NBA waters this time around after just dipping his toe in last offseason. That means Ohio State will probably have to go a little smaller on the front line because there’s a lack of experienced height. Look for Liddell to continue to blossom and be a smaller big that can make things happen around the rim and get into space.
Next … Key bench players for the Buckeyes
Deep and talented reserves for Ohio State
Duane Washington — Junior, 6-3, 190 lbs.
There’s no denying the shooting ability Washington possesses. As good as he is scoring at times, he can be equally frustrating with his shot selection and defense. But he’ll develop. And if he can figure it all out, he’s got a chance to be a guy teams have to plan for. He might even crack the starting five at times like he did this past season.
Abel Porter — Senior, 6-3, 200 lbs.
Getting Porter is a bigger deal than you think. Remember when Andrew Dakich came to Ohio State and provided a solid presence at the point guard spot and just did all the little things with an all-around floor game? He made a huge difference for Chris Holtmann’s first team in Columbus, and Porter will get plenty of time to back up C.J. Walker — also being put in the rotation and the two-guard.
Musa Jallow — Junior, 6-5, 200 lbs.
Many folks have forgotten about Jallow. He’s an athletic kid that can make plays in the open court, but it remains to be seen how well he comes back from injury. He’ll factor in, but it could be as the sixth man, or a little further down depending on how he bounces back.
Justin Ahrens — Junior, 6-5, 180 lbs.
Ahrens can nail bombs stepping off the bus, but he’s yet to really find his way into the starting lineup. He’s a bit of a wild card and could get significant minutes off the bench if he can continue to round out his game.
There’s also freshman Eugene Brown III and Zed Key that’ll factor in some way, but with the experience and maturity this team will have next season, their roles could be limited. However, Key does have an opportunity for some playing time with the limited bodies and height in the front-court.
The more you start putting this roster under the microscope, you begin to feel pretty good about the depth and interchangeable parts Holtmann will have to work with. The lack of a true, experienced big on the front line might be a spot to watch, but there’s a lot to like about the pieces coming together, even with the loss of a defensive stopper like Muhammad and the team’s leading scorer from the last few seasons.
Heck, the team might be even better than the last couple of years with the new weapons that are available to use.
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