NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. -- I have seen the future of Ohio State basketball.
He is big.
He is strong.
And, my God, he just took a rare charge in a summer basketball game!
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| Jared Sullinger is big enough to thrive in college, but might not be big enough to garner NBA attention just yet. (Provided to CBSSports.com) |
Preach on, young man.
"It creates a mental thing for the offensive player," Sullinger added. "If you take a charge early in a game, it messes up the offensive player because he doesn't want to pick up another foul. It changes the way he plays because he knows getting called for another charge will make him look silly."
Truth is, there are lots of ways for Jared Sullinger to make opponents look silly.
Taking a charge is merely one of them.
Sullinger is a 6-foot-9 (probably closer to 6-7, long as we're being honest), 262-pound center who makes up for what he lacks in athleticism and height with strength, skill and intelligence (See: Sullinger's theory on the art of taking charges). In other words, the consensus top five prospect from the Class of 2010 is a big-bodied, true post presence who should dominate the college game from the moment he enrolls at Ohio State, where he verbally committed more than two years ago.
So yeah, OSU has another elite big man on the way.
The pipeline will continue.
And it's odd when you take a step back and recognize the larger picture, that Thad Matta has now committed five-star centers in four of his past five recruiting classes. The craziest part: All four attended high schools within 180 miles of OSU's campus, meaning Matta hasn't had to fly around the nation searching for future pros as much as he has had to jump in a car and drive.
Five-star center Greg Oden is from Indianapolis (176 miles from OSU).
Five-star center Kosta Koufos is from Canton, Ohio (128 miles from OSU).
Five-star center B.J. Mullens is from Canal Winchester, Ohio (15 miles from OSU).
And Sullinger? Well, he's actually from right there in Columbus, Ohio (0 miles from OSU).
"I had no idea; I really didn't," Matta answered when asked if he recognized the string of dominant post players that would come through his area when he took the Ohio State job in 2004. "The only one I knew was Greg. That was really about it."
The only problem with elite big men -- and this really isn't a problem as much as a fact of life -- is that they are far more likely to spend just one year in college because NBA executives are happy to draft tall guys on potential. For proof, consider that Oden, Koufos and Mullens spent a combined three years in college, each leaving after their freshman seasons. But it's worth noting that Oden, Koufos and Mullens were all listed at 7-0, and Sullinger is nowhere close to that. So I guess what I'm saying is that even though Sullinger could impact winning more than any of them besides Oden, Ohio State is probably at little risk to lose him after one season because, again, Sullinger is somewhere between 6-7 and 6-8.
Matta can't comment on this, of course.
NCAA rules and all that.
But what Matta can do is smile at the idea and dream of the possibilities.
And that's what he seemed to be doing here at the Peach Jam, his next great big man on display.
