Classic Performances - Brent Darby's Final High School Game at Michigan's Class B State Finals (32 Points, 6 Threes)

(Screencap - Brent Darby vs Cheboygan at Michigan's Class B State Finals - 3/27/1999)

River Rouge's Finest - 25 Years ago, Late Buckeye great Brent Darby closed out his famed High School career at River Rouge with a classic 32 point (18 points via six threes!) performance in the Breslin Center at Michigan's Class B State Finals. Darby's efforts helped lead the Panthers to back to back State Championships.  Below are highlights from Darby's final game at the 1999 State Finals. We also included the full game from Darby's first State Final win in 1998 against Marshall HS!

Video #1 - Brent Darby Highlights vs Cheboygan

Video #2 - River Rouge vs Marshall - 1998 Class B State Finals (Full Game!)

Pro Buckeyes In Asia Part Four - Catching Up With Sam Thompson !

 

(Online Image - December 2023 - Mongolian Club Darkhan United Officially Announced Signing Of Buckeye Pro Sam Thompson for the 2023/2024 Season) 

(Pro Buckeyes In Asia 2024 - From L To R  - Amir Williams - Malaysia - Evan Ravenel - Japan - Jared Sullinger - China - Sam Thompson - Mongolia) 

Our fourth & last installment of the Buckeyes In Asia series lands us in Genghis Khan's former stomping grounds to catch up with veteran Sam Thompson!

Sam Thompson (Age 33) -- Ohio State Buckeye (2011-2015) -- Years Pro: 9 -- Current Club - Darkhan United (Mongolia) -- Experience: NBA G-League (USA), Hungary, Italy, Vietnam, Dominican Republic, New Zealand

Catching Up With Sam: Simply put, Sam Thompson was/is one of the most entertaining highflyers to ever don the Scarlet & Gray uniform of The Ohio State Basketball. There has obviously been several guys with hops to come through Columbus, but the moment Thompson came in and started throwing down dunks as a Freshman, we all knew we were witnessing something quite different. We knew Sam was HIM, as the kids like to say today.                                                                                                                                                      It's easy to add the superlatives about Sam finishing at the rim as he really was a walking highlight reel. But aside from his god given leaping ability, we knew his basketball acumen as a savvy 6'7 shooting guard/wing would allow him to flourish in whatever basketball environment his skills would lead him to. At age 33, Thompson is now a seasoned professional with extensive experience playing in the NBA G-League as well as overseas stops around the world in Europe, Asia, Central America & Oceania.

G-League Mainstay - We always rated Sam Thompson in & around the same class & caliber of players like Othello Hunter, Ron Lewis, David Lighty, Jon Diebler ect..who all possessed good ability & potential to play in the NBA. But as most know, the exclusive nature of the most elite basketball entity in the world requires players on the league fringe/bubble to find that right opportunity & situation at the right exact time to capture a coveted roster spot & ultimately become perennial NBA player. 

In Sam's case, it was not for a lack of trying, because we have to check the overall records, but Thompson might have perhaps the most NBA G-League experience of any professional Buckeye ever with 193 career G-League games under his belt spanning four different teams from 2015 to 2023 (with overseas play in between these seasons as well). Sam started in 86 of those 193 games with an average of 25.2 minutes, 8.2 points & 4 rebounds per game.  The Chicago native's stick-to-itiveness in returning to play in front of NBA personnel in the States via the G-League may have came from getting a small taste of league action to begin his pro journey as a Rookie.                                                                                                                                                                                              Following his career at Ohio State, Sam would sign a training camp contract with the Charlotte Hornets as an undrafted free agent. He appeared in five games with the Hornets (Left - Getty Images - Sam Thompson as a Charlotte Hornet vs LA Clippers) in the 2015 NBA Pre-season, logging a total of 37 minutes,  6 points, 2 steals & one rebound on an NBA court. But Charlotte ultimately did not have a roster spot for Thompson, thus kicking off the first of several stints in the G-League. (we still wish we would have download those few games where Thompson scored in a Hornets uniform!) Sam's G-League Stats/Club History.

We admittedly did not get to watch many of Sam's G-League games. But his total of games started, average of minutes & overall numbers indicate a core rotational player who was integral in helping his teams win with the individual capability of busting out as a game leader in points. And this is the type of role one would envision for a player with Sam's skillset on a court with NBA level competition..a core role player..perhaps a sixth man or guy who can provide energy off the bench as a two way player. 

                                                                                                        

Frequent Flyer Miles: The Charlotte Hornets franchise must have remained intrigued with Sam Thompson's ability as he would round out the 2010's decade with stints in Hungary (2016/2017), Lebanon (2017) followed by back to back seasons with the Charlotte affiliate Greensboro Swarm of the G-League (2017-2019).                                                                                                       But the 2020's is when Sam started to exercise his passport more frequently with stops in Italy (2020-2021 - 30 games), New Zealand (2021-2022 - 14 games), Lithuania (2022-2023 - 8 games) before returning to the states to finish out the 2023 season with the G-League's Sioux Falls Skyforce.                                                                                                                                                                             

Current Affairs: Sam Thompson began his 2023 pro campaign in the Dominican Republic with club Marineros of Puerto Plata. But it's fairly common for players/agencies to switch overseas teams throughout the season. And after four games of play in the DR, Thompson signed with Mongolian club Darkhan United (in December 2023) where he played to the end of the regular season in January 2024. This is not Sam's first experience on the Asian continent as he previously in the ASEAN Basketball League in 2020 in between G-League stints. As detailed in our last piece on Amir Williams. The ABL is an annual short regional tournament featuring Far East Asian countries that plays from November to March. Sam played with the Saigon Heat and was an All-ASEAN League Honorable Mention.                                                                                                                                                                                                              When thinking about professional ball overseas, Mongolia might be one of the last countries that comes to mind. But as we've noted, the sport of basketball is experiencing exponentially growth all across the Asian continent. Some familiar American names currently hooping in the Mongolian league include Diamond Stone (Maryland), Kalin Lucas (Michigan State), Durrell Summers (Michigan State), Keith Benson (Oakland), Jericole Hellems (NC State), and of course our Sam Thompson (Ohio State). Thompson's club finished the regular season with an 8-16 record, failing to make the league playoffs. Sam played in 12 games with Darkhan, averaging 18 points & 5 rebounds a game. ST had four 20 plus point scoring games including a season high 30 point performance on January 23, 2024!

(Videos)

- 25 point game in New Zealand (Clips)

- 36 point game in the ABL (Clips)

- 27 point game in the ABL (Clips)

- Podcast Interview on Drive The Lane

Video - George Reese Shares Thoughts On State Of OSU Hoops Ahead of His 1999 Final Four Team's Honoring at Ohio State/Purdue Game

 

(Classic Image: Coach Jim O'Brien with 5 of his famed Ohio State players from the 1999 Final Four Team - L to R - Michael Redd, George Reese, Scoonie Penn, Ken Johnson & Brian Brown) 

Honoring Excellence: There's an interesting dichotomy that will take place in the Schott on February 18th, 2024 where Ohio State Basketball will remember, honor & celebrate the 25th Year Anniversary of Jim O'Brien's legendary Final Four squad from the 1998/1999 Season, while at the same trying to find some reinvigoration for the current program, fresh off of parting ways with former Head Coach Chris Holtman as they take on a top five Purdue team.  

Several players from that Ohio State team are slated to be in attendance for the ceremony including the famed backcourt of James 'Scoonie' Penn, Michael Redd and Forward George Reese who recently appeared on the OVE Podcast with Sam & Torg to give his candid thoughts & opinions on the state of OSU Hoops among other subjects like NIL, his time playing for the Buckeyes, ect.. Check it out!

Flashback: 15 Years Ago - Daequan Cook Becomes NBA Three Point Champion

(Phoenix, Arizona - Former Buckeye Daequan Cook Becomes NBA Three-Point Champion - 2.14.2009)

Dayton's Own: With the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend underway, we wanted to take a flashback look at a former Buckeye winning one of the more prestigious awards in Professional Basketball. It's hard to believe, but this year's event marks the 15th year Anniversary of Dayton Dunbar & Ohio State product Daequan Cook upsetting the field to become the 2009 NBA Three Point Champion! 

Some may recall that Daequan Cook (Image: Interview with basketball legend Cheryl Miller at All-Star Weekend) was still a young pup back in 2009. At the young age of 21 years old, Cook was just a few years into his professional career with the Miami Heat. The smooth young shooting guard was operating with a bit of a chip on his shoulder at the time due to doubters in the basketball community questioning the early entry to the NBA along with his overall ability/potential in general. 

 Cook's individual play & results within his role during Ohio State's final four run in the 2006-2007 season failed to match pre-season expectations and did not seem to warrant leaving college ball to test pro waters. Yet, Daequan would join his fellow 'Thad 5' teammates Greg Oden & Mike Conley Jr. in making the jump to the NBA. He surprised some by becoming the 21st overall selection in the first round of the NBA draft by the Miami Heat. As an adept mid & long range shooter while not being anything close to a finished product, Cook comfortably made the Heat where he logged minutes in 59 games, starting in 19 with an average of 8.8 points & 3 rebounds as a rookie. 

Shooting On The Big Stage: Playing alongside superstar Dwayne Wade, Daequan Cook provided an increase in contributions in year two with the Heat with an 11ppg average ahead of the 2009 All-Star Weekend. Some in the basketball community felt Cook was perhaps too young or lacked the name recognition to be a participant in the Footlocker Three-Point Contest, one of the more coveted individual competitions/awards in the NBA. But DC had been used to overcoming doubters (haters) by this point in his career. 

Cook's shooting numbers throughout the season would allow him to be one of the 2009 Three Point contestants along with returning two time Champion Jason Kapono, Mike Bibby, Rashard Lewis, Roger Mason & Danny Granger. The Dayton, Ohio native put everyone on notice right away by winning the first round overall with 18 points. The second round featured Kapono who finished with 14 points, Cook & Lewis who both had a 15 point result, thus eliminating the defending champ.  An extra round was played between Daequan Cook & Rashard Lewis due to the second round tie score. And the final shootout is where Cook really shined as he easily blew out Lewis' mere 7 points by exceeding his first round score with a 19 point tally, officially ending Jason Kapano's two year streak & leaving no doubt as the new NBA Three Point Champion..the first & only Ohio State Buckeye to accomplish that feat. 

Just a month later on March 4th, Cook would have a new 27 point career high performance where he went 6 of 8 from three point range against the Phoenix Suns. 

(Videos - Extended Highlights of Daequan Cook's 3 Point Shootout & 27 point performance)

Pro Buckeyes In Asia - Part Three - Amir Williams Wins 3rd Career Domestic League Championship With Title In Malaysia !

(Malaysia - Buckeye Veteran Amir Williams Celebrates League Championship With His NX Matrix Teammates - Late January 2024) 

 

 (Pro Buckeyes In Asia 2024 - From L To R  - Amir Williams - Malaysia - Evan Ravenel - Japan - Jared Sullinger - China - Sam Thompson - Mongolia) 

Our Series covering Professional Buckeyes playing on the Asian continent takes us to Malaysia where another Buckeye big has continued to enjoy consecutive seasons of individual & team success in recent years. This post is more of an overview of Amir Williams's pro career in general. Let's catch up!

Well Traveled & Well Played - We always marvel at how the game of Basketball can take players around the world leading to life changing experiences, opportunities & connections. The game of Basketball is perhaps the second most popular sport in the world behind Futbol (soccer). The sheer number of players & level of competition in North America is extremely fierce..then when factoring in the world at large, it's insane to think about just how many guys are competing to reach the upper echelon of the sport. 

As we all know, only a very small percentage of Basketball players will ever come close to competing in the NBA, the G-League (previously known as the D-League) or high level Overseas play. But for players with the capacity & perseverance to make professional basketball a viable career, many opportunities are abound. 

The fact remains that making it to D1 level College Ball, getting paid to play as a professional for consecutive years while experience longevity, individual & team success is a great accomplishment. Success is exactly what former Ohio State Center Amir Williams has been experiencing in recent years as a pro ball player. The Detroit County Day product is now a seasoned ten year veteran of professional basketball having played in four different continents in North America, Europe, Asia & Oceania. 

Amir Williams' resume of clubs reads like an undercover government agent or mercenary. There's stops in Mexico, Canada, UK, New Zealand, Switzerland, Hungary & Malaysia. 

His pro career out of Ohio State began in the NBA G-League (#6th Overall Pick in the G-League Draft) with the Rio Grande Vipers (2015/2016) & the Iowa Wolves (2016/2017). 

Rio Grande had a pretty loaded G-League roster at the time featuring would be legit NBA guys in Montrezl Harrell & Lithuanian Donatas Motiejunas in the front court. It was a bit of a tall order for Amir to come in as a rookie and establish himself as a feature big on a playoff G-League squad vying for the league title. Not unlike his play in Columbus, it would take Williams some time to get comfortable with the new level of play and earn more than a limited role. 

Furthermore, while his stats remained unremarkable in his second year with Iowa, that is where you could see him getting more comfortable against G-League competition as he didn't have to play a certain role in pressure filled situations like his time with Rio Grande. Bigs like Amir Williams, who might be on the raw side in early development stages just need to play, play & play some more. In our view extensive game minutes/reps where players have the freedom to play, make mistakes & learn from adversity without worrying about getting benched can be instrumental in one's development. (check out the following clips below of one of his big games with Iowa - 18 & 18!)

Passport Time - As we examined how Amir's career trajectory has played out..it looks like he was able to benefit from playing in different countries, seeing different styles of play & learning how to best maximize his skills for a club in the pro game. He was able to post double double averages in his 3rd (New Zealand) & fourth (Switzerland) seasons before really coming into his own at start of the 2020's decade as a veteran in his late 20s/early 30s. 

When we view clips of Williams in recent years, we see a much improved player who is in the best shape of his life physically. His frame is much more toned without the extra weight and he looks like a more fluid athlete. Basketball wise he has expanded his game all the way to shooting three point shots and he's actually comfortable in handling the ball and taking defenders to the rack. Make no mistake, the formative years of college is a long time away from a player's professional prime..players get a lot of better and this is not the same Amir Williams we saw at Ohio State. 

Amir's four/five year stretch starting from 2019 to the current 2023/2024 season has been impressive with a steady 17.5 & 12 average of points & rebounds spanning seasons in the UK, Canada, Switzerland, & Malaysia. He had a great 2019-2020 run with the Worcester Wolves of the British Basketball League that featured a career highlight in winning the BBL Cup Tournament Title. Williams led Worcester with 23 points & 13 rebounds in the Cup Finals (pictured left after the game). 

His stint in the United Kingdom was potentially shaping up to be the best individual & team season of his career, but their playoff post-season (along with all sports around the world) got canceled due to the global pandemic. 

Amir's return to basketball after Covid came in January 2021 when he joined Swiss club BBC Nyon ( a team that went 1-12 prior to his arrival). to help them win some games to close out the 2020/2021 season. 

AW's travels would then take him to the London Lightning of Canada's NBL where he played from 2021 through 2023. The Lightning are one of the strongest teams in Canada's top domestic league, and it must have been a breathe of fresh air for Williams after enduring a losing season in Switzerland the year before. Amir & the Lightning won back to back Canadian League Championships in 2022 & 2023. Williams had some monster games in his NBL stints including a 40 point, 18 rebound game on 5/12/2022 & a near triple double stat-line of 16 points, 11 rebounds & 8 blocks on 3/24/2022 among others. 

(Videos - Clips from AW's 2019/2020 Season in the UK - A message from Amir to fans after the season gets canceled, a clip from Swiss news as they profile Williams' arrival to BBC Nyon in Switzerland, highlights from one of his career 40 point game in Canada) 

Enter The Matrix - Amir Williams stayed quite busy in 2023. The timeline is a bit confusing, but in the same calendar year as his final stint in Canada, Williams also landed in East Asia to play in the 2023 ABL Invitationals with Malaysian squad NS Matrix. The ABL Invitational is a tournament organized by the ASEAN Basketball League, a cross-regional league featuring teams from Far East Asian countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong ect.

Both Amir & his new Malaysian club were apparently satisfied with the pairing as Williams would re-join NS Matrix for their 2023-2024 Domestic League Season. Malaysia's Domestic MBL is a just a six team league with a regular season that ran from November 2023 to January 2024. Williams, now at age 33, played in 17 games total with an average of 16 points & 8 rebounds. His impressive run with NS Matrix culminated with the 2024 MBL Championship..Amir's 3rd consecutive Domestic League Title!..Detroit's own was named MVP of Game One of the Finals from a dominating 29 point, 17 rebound, 3 Blocks performance. In series clinching Game Two of the Finals, Williams was a straight up menace on the boards with 17 rebounds to with 9 points. 

What's more, the accolades did not end with the Game One Finals MVP as Amir would additionally be named to the All Malaysian League First Team along with the Center of The Year award! It will be interesting to see if Amir Williams opts to continue his career in Asia like fellow Buckeyes Jared Sullinger & Evan Ravenel. Switching to a different basketball market almost every other season has largely proven to be successful for Williams, but as we have noted..several Asian Domestic League clubs seem to invite friendly situations & environments to Buckeye bigs.

Amir Williams is currently playing some of the best ball in his career. In our opinion he can definitely play in the highest caliber leagues in Asia right now. We would like him & his agency pursue a step up in competition & level of play to see where he potentially stacks up against the best of Japan or China. We're rooting for ya A-Dub!

(Article - Eurobasket - Embracing The Game - The Growth Of Popularity of Basketball In Malaysia )

(Videos - Check out the numerous videos of Amir Williams in action in Asia in the ABL Invitationals & MBL Finals with NS Matrix!)

 

Pro Buckeyes In Asia 2024 - Part Two - Evan Ravenel

 

(Buckeye Pro Evan Ravenel pictured with his Playoffs MVP Award- Japan 2016)

 (Pro Buckeyes In Asia 2024 - From L To R  - Amir Williams - Malaysia - Evan Ravenel - Japan - Jared Sullinger - China - Sam Thompson - Mongolia) 

Around The World With E. Rav - Evan Ravenel is one of several players from Ohio State's high-achieving 2012 (Final Four) & 2013 (Elite Eight) teams still actively playing Professional Basketball, now as seasoned, grizzled veterans of the game they love. 

Ravenel, a native of Tampa, Florida, has enjoyed & persisted through a 10 year Overseas Professional career where his talents have allowed him to hoop on three different continents (Europe, Asia, South America). Some of Evan's more visible moments in his career include, but not limited to participating in the 2013-2014 FIBA Eurochallenge competition in his rookie season with Bulgarian club Rilski Sportist, winning the 2015/2016 League Championship & Playoffs MVP in Japan's BJ League, playing against the Sacramento Kings in a 2016 pre-season game with Isreali club Maccabi Haifa, winning the 2019 TBT Championship with Carmen's Crew, participating in the 2020 FIBA Basketball Champions League of Americas with Argentine club Quimsa. 

Evan 2.0 - Astute watchers of Evan's game in college could probably see his style of play as one that would lend itself to longevity & staying power on the next level. He often shined in a limited role as a formidable rebounder, defender, offensive post with a solid shooting form/touch for a stout big. Yet,  Buckeye fans who haven't been keen on keeping up with former players in the pros definitely noticed a different version of Evan Ravenel in recent TBT competitions.  

We would see an upgraded overall game from 'Rav-2.0' that has developed & blossomed into a well rounded multi-dimensional offensive threat. His ability to score in the post, face up and drive along with mid & long range shooting as a big makes him a matchup nightmare for defenders. 

Like many of his Carmen's Crew teammates, you could tell Evan had seen & played a lot of basketball, matured physically & mentally through the years and is comfortable doing just about anything on the court. And that has been one of the more satisfying aspects of following former players like Evan Ravenel in the pros; being able to witness their development in real time as they get opportunities to display their full repertoire in significantly bigger, more expanded roles. 

Working through ten professional seasons overseas where one needs to ingratiate themselves into various foreign environments, basketball markets, accommodations or lack thereof, playing styles ect..while living away from home the majority of a calendar year requires a great deal of patience, durability, availability, perseverance, positivity, inner discipline, aptitude among other traits & characteristics. To that end, Evan might describe the current version of himself as 'Evan 5.0'..because a player does not experience this type of longevity in pro basketball without many ups/downs, trials, tribulations, lessons learned & multiple transformations. 

Ravenel's pro career timeline has primarily been a tale of two continents with most of his seasons played in Europe & Asia with a stint in South America sprinkled in. He immediately got a taste of competitive Eastern European basketball out of college by playing with aforementioned Rilski Sportist. His rookie season prepared him well for his second stint in the Balkans with Polish club Starogard Gdanski. In what would become his best stastical season in European play..Rav made excellent contributions in Poland with an impressive 19ppg & 9 boards a game average. 

Land Of The Rising Sun - Evan Ravenel experienced perhaps his most memorable overseas run as a third year pro playing in The BJ League in Japan with the Ryukyu Golden Kings of Okinawa. This was the final season of what was then known as the BJ League. If you have some time, it's an interesting read to learn about the basketball business market in Japan & how a FIBA suspension led to two competing organizations merging to form the current top league in Japan, The B League.

Ravenel become apart of basketball history in Japan by helping lead the Golden Kings to a league championship & becoming the Finals MVP in the Bj-League's final season. His stat line in the series clinching contest was a game high 22 points (10 of 14 from the field) & 12 rebounds. And he may not have known it at the time, but that Championship Run with Ryukyu may have propelled him into an American mainstay in Japanese Basketball. 

In a 2022 Podcast Interview, Evan explained that a difficult situation in Israel following the title season in Japan especially made him realize that moving into another basketball market can sometimes make for a challenging transition. Players have to prove themselves all over again to people who may be unfamiliar of what they're capable of, roles may different ect.

 As mentioned in our piece on Jared Sullinger, unlike in years past, overseas ball players do not have to solely rely on European Basketball to find solid career situations. The level of play & competition in Asia continues to improve and the style of game is more open in general (than Europe) with certain players having more agency & autonomy to display their versatility

Evan Ravenel w/ Altiri Chiba 2022/2023 Japan

After Israel, Rav played in a handful of games in Belgium before returning to Japan to finish out the 2016-2017 season. And aside from one more year in Bulgaria with Rilski (2017-2018) Japan has been like a second home for Evan having played on four different Japanese clubs since 2017 including consecutive seasons with Altiri Chiba.  In speaking about his time in Japan & why he feels it is an optimal basketball market for him, Ravenel remarked about how welcoming & supportive the Japanese people have been. The positive environment coupled with his past exploits/reputation on the court has afforded him the liberty & good will to put his overall game on full display. 

Evan Ravenel's current (and 5th different Japanese team) club is the Kagawa Five Arrows of the B League 3rd Division. His team is currently ranked #2 in their league standings with a nice 27-7 record. In his latest game on 2/11/2024 - E. Rav scored 18 points in his team's 30 point victory. 

Follow Evan directly on Twitter (X) 

Article - Japan Times - Golden Kings Bring Curtain Down On Bj-League With Fourth Title

Okinawa Wanderer - Golden Kings Capture Final Championship of BJ league

Podcast - Sports Talk With PlayerAgent3: Evan Ravenel - March 3rd 2021

All of the Above Podcast - James White - Ron Hamp w/ Evan Ravenel - Jan 8 2021

Pro Buckeyes in Asia 2024 - Part One - Jared Sullinger

(Korea - A svelte looking Jared Sullinger in the KBL - Spring 2021)

 (Pro Buckeyes In Asia 2024 - From L To R  - Amir Williams - Malaysia - Evan Ravenel - Japan - Jared Sullinger - China - Sam Thompson - Mongolia) 

State of the Union - After what was just about a 10 year hiatus!..Buckeye Ballers Blogspot is back with the continued goal of providing as many updates, articles, videos ect..of former Ohio State Hoopers currently competing in the professional ranks around the world, coaching on various levels, in sports media and life after basketball in general. Details about this platform's rebranding including how we plan on moving forward will be outlined in near future posts. 

In addition to following Buckeyes during their current pro seasons, we also intend on revisiting notable & important stories from the past eight to ten years that we didn't get to cover, but are certainly worth documenting like retirements, championship victories, drafts nights, pro debuts ect..

We would like to extend a sincere thanks & gratitude to any & all readers who have enjoyed reading our stories through the years. 

How Firm Thy Friendship - It's always interesting to think about some of the unique circumstances & dynamics around being a diehard hoops head in the middle of a sports universe where football is the king that rules with an iron-fist. Simply put, Ohio State is home to a rich basketball history & tradition that doesn't have to take a backseat to most schools in the sport. Yet, because this institution also happens to have the number one football brand in the country, hoops fans are resigned to the fact that our first love in sports (#BallIsLife) can sometimes be an afterthought in Columbus. 

So what dynamics are exactly at play in a sports environment where football is heads & shoulders on top? Well, the cynicism in us believes there are way too many 'fair-weather' supporters. The stark difference in fan engagement & support when OSU Hoops plays well versus the opposite is sometimes embarrassingly noticeable. Real hoops heads do not require a top squad to have mere interest. And even when the Buckeyes are playing well, we'd argue there still isn't the amount of hype & fanfare one would expect from a school with Ohio State's resources, alumni base & brand power.  

(Image: Former Buckeye Terence Dials officially became a member of Ohio State's Basketball Staff in 2019 by assuming the position of Director of Professional Development. Dial's predecessor in this role was none other than another OSU great in Scoonie Penn) 

And this brings us to the over-arching theme of this post because, in light of Ohio State's recent, but in all actuality a gradual downturn in basketball, we are currently witnessing some of the worst aspects of fickle, fair-weather fandom.  It looks like another hardwood coaching staff is nearing the end of an era in Columbus. With that in mind, isn't in amazing how many casual fans (translation - football fans who decide to pay attention when the hoops team is either competing well or very poorly) have suddenly morphed into diehard hoops heads again? Well that's neither here or there..we're obviously not thrilled with the state of the Basketball program along with the constant pilling on by fans & pundits alike..but amidst the uptick of attention surrounding OSU Basketball.."chaos is a ladder" for some...That is to say we believe this was as good of a time as any to resume coverage for fans yearning for some positive Buckeye related news, and for those simply wondering where some of their favorite OSU hoopers are currently playing. 

(Our spotlight of Buckeyes playing overseas resumes with profiles of four veterans currently hooping on the Asian Continent.) 

The Sport of Basketball has enjoyed immense growth worldwide in the last twenty plus years. This ever-growing popularity has not been any more evident than in Asian markets where countries like China & The Philippines have become unlikely basketball hotbeds. 

Development of basketball infrastructure across regions in Africa, Asia, South America, Europe, ect not only benefits the sport in those native markets, but it also provides more opportunities for the tremendous amount of North American ballplayers looking to continue their basketball careers at the professional level. 

While domestic leagues in Europe are still thought of as the class of overseas basketball, the rest of the world continues to catch up to North America & Europe with Asia perhaps making the strongest push to be a destination where  North American imports can make a name for themselves exclusively playing in certain countries against legit competition. Former Ohio State Buckeyes who have had stints in Asia include Othello Hunter, JJ Sullinger, Terence Dials, Byron Mullens ect..

The pinnacle of Basketball in Asia is China's Chinese Basketball Assocation aka The CBA. China's top league gained initial global fame in the late 2000s/early 2010s as a popular new basketball market for NBA Stars like Tracy McGrady & Stehpon Marbury to continue playing at a high level while exposing/expanding their personal brands to the lucrative Chinese basketball economy. But in a relatively short period of time, the CBA has developed & evolved from a mildly-serious outfit competition wise into arguably a Top 10 Domestic league in the world featuring some of the best North American Imports in overseas basketball. 

(Image - Jared Sullinger meets with media during TBT prep - Summer 2022)

One of the top imports & players overall in Asia is Columbus, Ohio's own Jared Sullinger. North American fans have likely grown accustomed to seeing the former Buckeye star help lead Ohio State Alumni & Columbus area based Summer League squad Carmen's Crew as their head coach at the annual TBT Basketball Tournament. But when Sully isn't cutting his teeth as a coach on the sidelines for Carmen's Crew (we're going to have a whole separate post specifically detailing Jared & his Ohio State peers annual participation in the TBT), he's been nothing short of the familiar walking double-double machine that his fans are used to seeing in overseas league play.

Following a six year stint in the NBA, Jared Sullinger has found great stability playing ball in Asia, most notably with Shenzhen, a CBA club located in the Guangdong Pronvince in China. Shenzhen has been a second home for Sullinger in four out of his five playing stints in Asia. His lone season outside of China took place in Spring 2021 with Korean club Anyang of the (you guessed it) Korean Basketball League. Sully's participation in Korea was as a result of the worldwide Pandemic and subsequent travel restrictions in China. In what would prove to be a memorable run, Jared joined Anyang in February of 2021 and helped lead his new club to the first Domestic League Championship of his professional career. Sully was awarded with the KBL Finals MVP for his efforts in the Championship round!

(Videos - Clips from Sully's MVP Round in the KBL Finals, a podcast interview, some top plays of his 2021 regular season in Korea, clips from a 40 point game in China)

Sullinger returned to the familiar confines of the CBA in Winter 2021 by re-signing with home club Shenzhen, where he continues to play to this day. The completion of the 2023/2024 season will mark a three year consecutive run with Shenzhen (2021 to 2024) & five years overall with the club. As of mid February 2024, Sully is currently averaging 21 ppg along with 11 rebounds per game which is the sixth best average on the boards in the league.  He notched a season high of 42 points & 16 rebounds on December 3rd against Guangzhou!

Currently sitting as the 6th best team record wise in the CBA League Standings, Shenzhen is on pace to make the 12 team post-season playoff competition that will begin in April 2024. It's significantly much easier to follow players on these Asian basketball clubs today than some ten years ago. Fans can stay up to date on Sully & Shenzhen on English webpages such as ProBallers.com (Jared Sullinger) & Eurobasket (Jared Sullinger - China) . You can also follow Jared Sullinger directly on Twitter (X), CTGN Sports Scene Page and of course keep it locked to Buckeye Ballerss for updates on Sully's latter season run in China!

(Videos: More Highlights from the CBA - Clips from Jared Sullinger's career high 55 point game in his debut season in China - 11/3/2017 -- Plus a 28 point game performance late in the 2023 regular season) 

Article - Forbes (Mark Deeks - 7/31/2023 - The Late-Career Resurgence of Jared Sullinger

Article - Celtics Blog (Noa Dalzell - 12/22/2023 - Now A Basketball Star In China, former Celtic Jared Sullinger Still Bleeds Green