Ohio State basketball: Who will get drafted next year?

The Ohio State basketball team didn’t have much success on the court as a team last season. They finished under .500 and missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time since Thad Matta’s last season. They hadn’t been under .500 in over 20 years. And yet, there were some individual successes.

Brice Sensabaugh ended up playing well enough that he could declare for the NBA Draft and it not be absurd as a freshman. In fact, there are some mock drafts that have him being taken in the lottery. He seems like a sure-fire first-round pick regardless.

Which member of the Ohio State basketball team could get drafted next year? Even though the team’s success wasn’t there last year, the program still has some talent on the roster. In fact, there is one player in particular who could get drafted if he has a good year in 2023-24.

That player is Bruce Thornton. He very well could be the best player on the team next season. He showed a lot of growth in his freshman season. By the end of the year, he was the only consistent form of offense that the Buckeyes could count on.

Now that he’s had some experience in Big Ten play, I expect Thornton to be a lot better next year. He has shown that he can hit the three and hit some midrange shots. He needs to work on finishing at the rim with contact, but that will come.

I think scouts will like his ability to pass the ball too. He led the team in assists a year ago and I expect that to continue this year as well. He’s only going to improve with a full season under his belt. I think with a good season, he could potentially be a lottery pick.

Hopefully, the team as a whole will get better as Thornton gets better.