We’re now four days into the two-week transfer portal window. That means players have two weeks to put their name into the transfer portal, but they can take as long as needed to make a decision (as long as they do it before fall classes begin, typically).
Ohio State has lost four players to the transfer portal so far — Devin Royal, Taison Chatman, Colin White, and Gabe Cupps. The Buckeyes also lost four players to graduation/exhausting eligibility — Bruce Thornton, Brandon Noel, Christoph Tilly,
and Puff Johnson.
With two freshmen set to enroll this summer, that leaves potentially six spots that could be filled on the roster for the 2026-27 season. So far, Ohio State has added zero. That will change soon.
Last week, Connor and Justin “debated” their favorite Bruce Thornton moment from his time in Columbus. Really, it was more of a discussion. The biggest and best moment — Bruce becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer — was off limits, because that felt like cheating in that exercise.
With “Bruce Thornton Day” off the table, Connor said that his favorite Bruce moment was Media Day 2024, when Thornton revealed that he’s an Aaron Rodgers superfan. Despite growing up in Georgia, Thornton was a Packers fan for years and years, until becoming a Jets fan when Rodgers went to New York. He was (assumedly) a Steelers fan last season, and is now waiting to find out of Rodgers will continue playing or not.
Justin went with Thornton’s buzzer-beating three to beat Maryland in February, 2025, which is probably the most popular choice among fans aside from the day he set the scoring record. Thornton played all 40 minutes that day and scored 31 points. The win didn’t ultimately get them into the NCAA Tournament, but it pulled them closer in that moment.
Back to this season – Ohio State has lots of roster spots to fill, but only a few (maybe even just one) are for starters. Expect Jake Diebler and the Buckeyes to go on a blitz over the next several weeks adding potentially half a dozen players, but not every player can be an all-conference, 20 points per game type of guy.
So, what should Diebler’s priority be this spring in the transfer portal?
This week’s question: What should be the No. 1 transfer portal priority for Ohio State men’s basketball?
Connor: Point Guard
More than anything else, Ohio State needs a point guard. For the first time in four years, the Buckeyes don’t have a 6-foot-1, 200+ pound bulldog ready to play 40 minutes at the position.
Each of the last four seasons, the point guard situation has just been a given. If anything, it’s been tough to recruit additional guards to Ohio State, because it’s tough to sell the role of a backup to a point guard who has to be drug off the floor.
The Buckeyes do not have another point guard on the roster, nor do they have a freshman point guard waiting in the wings to inherit the role Thornton left open. That means Ohio State will need to find someone in the transfer portal. Whether that’s a one-year band-aid or a multi-year player is up to Diebler, but the Buckeyes really need to find someone to run the offense.
Ohio State has been linked to BYU transfer Rob Wright this week. Wright, who played his freshman season at Baylor and sophomore year in Provo, nearly hit the elite 50/40/80 slash line last season, shooting 46.7% overall, 41% from three-point range, and 82.1% from the free throw line.
Playing alongside AJ Dybantsa, Wright averaged 18.1 points and 4.6 assists per game, with an assist-to-turnover ratio that was better than 2:1.
However, Wright is one of the most highly sought-after players in the portal this spring. It’s possible that the price for Wright may swell beyond what Ohio State can afford. Even if it’s not him, the Buckeyes would be well-served to find a point guard this spring to pair with Mobley, who has proven to be more efficient as a shooting guard.
The idea of sliding Mobley over to point guard and adding an off-ball guard in the portal has also been discussed, but the statistics show that it may be better to leave Mobley where he is. His assist to turnover ratio is closer to 1:1 than 2:1, and he’s a much better shooting off the pass than he is off the dribble.
Simply put, Mobley has been a more efficient scorer thus far when he’s able to be set up by teammates, rather than trying to create things for himself in isolation.
By way of retention or incoming freshmen, Ohio State has three, potentially four of its starters already on the roster. The only position that isn’t accounted for is point guard.
Justin: Center
It is no secret the Buckeyes have to add a starting level guard and a starting level center — and they will add both — but for the sake of this argument, I do think it is more important for them to prioritize the center position in this cycle.
I will say, this is assuming John Mobley Jr. ends up coming back to school and withdrawing his name from the transfer portal, which I believe he will.
There are more guards in the portal than there are centers, so that is an important part of this. Also, the Buckeyes do have Josh Ojianwuna from Baylor staying in Columbus and he is a starting level center, but he is coming off a serious knee injury so we will have to wait and see how he bounces back.
Because of that injury and the Buckeyes losing Christoph Tilly, Brandon Noel and Devin Royal, they will need to replenish the frontcourt to help Amare Bynum and incoming freshman Anthony Thompson.
Also, because of the scarcity of top centers in the portal and the need that every team has for a top center, those players tend to have a higher ask for NIL, so you have to prioritize that position to get a top player.
The Buckeyes have not had a great center since Kaleb Wesson, and every year it comes back to hurt them in the Big Ten where the center position is wildly competitive.
They have to get both, but if the money is tight, the center position is more important.
