When Ohio State secured Derek Funderburk and Micah Potter's commitments, it significantly lowered the amount of stress on the Buckeye coaches.
The 2016 class is currently full and the 2017 roster offers limited room. It all results in Thad Matta's staff taking a different approach to recruiting.
Markelle Fultz is a "late bloomer" of sorts, with a Maryland offer coming last fall and many other high-major schools jumping in at the turn of the year. Arizona, Kansas, Virginia and Texas – prior to Shaka Smart's arrival – all offered him in 2015.
Unlike with the in-state recruits Funderburk and Potter, the Buckeyes waited on the Maryland native. According to his high school coach, they offered last week:
Markelle Fultz 2016 Combo received an offer today from Ohio State
— Mike Jones (@DeMathaHoops) May 20, 2015
It's not unusual to be more deliberate with a prospect from outside Ohio. Happens more often than not. However, it's rare for OSU to start pushing for a recruit well after the Kansas' of the world have.
Regardless, it's unlikely the Buckeyes add anyone else in 2016 unless someone departs the roster beforehand. Wise to stay in contact with recruits such as Fultz in case that does happen.
If a scholarship opens, Matta could use his wide-ranging skill set.
"Hopefully, I’ll be a versatile one that can play the two or the three," Fultz told SNY.tv. "I’m transitioning myself into being a one right now."
Fultz played on DeMatha's JV squad as recently as his sophomore year, meaning he's still far from reaching his full potential.
"He's really only just beginning to scratch the surface of his potential as he turns raw, yet rapidly emerging talent into consistent production," according to ESPN.com's scouting report. "He has great instincts and natural feel for the game in the open floor, shoots it well to the three-point line, can be crafty finishing at the rim, and has good poise to his game."
AAU Recap
Updating last week's story on Funderburk's AAU squad: the King James Shooting Stars sealed the program's first berth in the Nike Peach Jam by virtue of finishing second in their division.
King James coach Steve Wright thought his team only needed to win two games during the Memorial Day weekend tournament in Minneapolis. As it turned out, they won all five. One game included a comeback victory after trailing by 16 points.
Funderburk started the session strong with a pair of robust scoring efforts. He dropped 17 on NorthWest XPress and 16 Seattle Rotary Style. In both of those games, Funderburk hit 60 percent or better from the field, and also snagged 12 rebounds against Seattle.
Meanwhile, here's Potter showing off his low-post moves at the Adidas Gauntlet:
