The Ohio State basketball program has only won one national championship in the program's long history. They won that title back in 1960, hoisting the crown as the best team in the country. They also made the national championship game in 1961 and 1962.
One of the biggest reasons they were able to do that was because of the play of Jerry Lucas. Lucas is one of the best players in the history of basketball, not just Ohio State basketball. The Buckeyes would not have won their championship if he hadn't been a big part of the offense.
Lucas has already had a lot of honors bestowed on him in his life. He is in the Basketball Hall of Fame, the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame, and he has his number is retired in the rafters. Now, he is getting one more honor, arguably the biggest honor any basketball player can get.
Former Ohio State basketball player Jerry Lucas is getting a statue
The Ohio State Buckeyes announced that they will be building a statue of Jerry Lucas outside the Schottenstein Center. He becomes just one of three Ohio State athletes to have a statue, and just one of four Ohio State greats associated with the athletic program to have that honor.
Lucas certainly deserves it. While he was with the Buckeyes, he was a three-time Consensus All-American, led the NCAA in rebounding twice, and was the Consensus National Player of the Year twice as well. That's quite a legacy to leave in the world of college basketball.
Of course, Lucas would go on to do great things in the NBA, as well. He won an NBA title with the New York Knicks in 1973, made seven All-Star teams, three first-team NBA teams, two second-team All-NBA teams, and was named the All-Star Game MVP in 1965, his second year in the league.
Quite frankly, Lucas is one of the greatest players to ever put on a Buckeye uniform, no matter what sport it is. This statue is completely deserved so that his legacy may live on forever. At the age of 85, Lucas is on the back nine of life. It will be nice to honor him in this way.
While Ross Bjork hasn't made great decisions recently, this one should be applauded. Honoring the greats who pass through the university should be easy, and Lucas is certainly one of the greats.