Classyposter58;1834016 wrote:Which begs the question why is it gone? I mean OSU isn't getting any top talent and looking at recruiting right now other than Wesson we have no top 100 players.
I mean this is fucking Ohio State, how the hell can we not get at least decent talent in this day and age
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1. Because Ohio State is generally known as a football school where basketball is second fiddle and is surrounded by programs that currently have both more of an emphasis on basketball and coaching stability. Some of his best recruiting was out of Indiana when the Hoosiers were in disarray. But now, it seems most major (and even lesser like Xavier and Dayton) have had good systems in place for a few years, a larger focus on basketball. In football, they can simply say "We are OSU". In basketball, they can't. So many other programs in the area have either (or both) a more decorated history or more success in the last couple/few years.
2. He's recently sucked at getting Ohio's best kids. Luke Kennard's been Duke's best player this year, for one example of an Ohioan who left the state. And I'm sure it wouldn't take long to research a couple more that could really help this year. Just look at the rosters for, I don't know, MSU, Michigan, Purdue, other B1G teams. There's ALWAYS a good player from Ohio on a couple of those teams every year.
3. Now that he's focusing more on Ohio, the state isn't really churning out super-good talent like it has in the past. To tie in with #2, Ohio has 3/100 of ESPN's top recruits with Wesson the best at #78. The two below him went to Butler and WVU. So he's stuck with 3-star guys who may or may not become actual quality contributors, but it won't be an overnight process for this to happen.
4. The NBA pipeline has vanished. Oden-Conley-Cook all were 1-and-done and NBA bound. Turner and Sully stuck around longer, but also made it. And then...just Russell (who was a foregone conclusion). DeShawn Thomas, LaQuinten Cook, Aaron Craft, etc. wound up in the D League or overseas, but for kids looking to get boosted to NBA stock, the recent track record sucks. And...
5. The recent lack of improvement by most players. Shannon Scott never developed a consistent shot. Craft was a defensive demon with a great first step on drives, but never got outside shooting down to a science. Sam Thompson was a physical freak who never became a complete player. Or a guy like Loving, who just never has looked to be dialed in consistently effort-wise. He'll kick ass in one game and then go 3-4 more where he's sleepwalking.