Meechie Johnson is transferring back to the Ohio State basketball program

The Ohio State basketball team is set for a completely new era with Jake Diebler as the new head coach. Chris Holtmann is gone now and Diebler is ready to put his stamp on this team. We saw what he was able to do once he took over in the middle of February.

Under Holtmann, the Buckeyes saw an exodus of players leave over the years. They all left for a variety of reasons, but they all clearly didn't want to play for Holtmann anymore. One of those players has decided to return to the Buckeyes now that he is no longer there.

Meechie Johnson left the Buckeyes after two seasons in Columbus. He has spent the last two years with South Carolina and has blossomed with the Gamecocks. He averaged 14 points per game for a team that made the NCAA Tournament this past year.

Johnson will now return to the Ohio State basketball team to what is now a loaded backcourt. The loss of Scotty Middleton now feels less significant. Johnson should slide right in to start next to Bruce Thornton in the backcourt to form a formidable scoring tandem.

This move for Johnson likely pushes Roddy Gayle back to the bench next season which might be where he's best suited anyway. He wasn't able to be a go-to scorer like the Buckeyes thought he might be at the beginning of the season. Now he can be a sixth man.

Of course, Diebler could decide to start a three-guard lineup. I don't think that's likely though. None of the guards are particularly tall, so defensively that would be a problem. No matter what, this move makes the Buckeyes better.

Ohio State isn't done in the transfer portal either. I wouldn't be surprised if they added at least one more player in the portal before it closes.