Ohio State signed two top-50 prospects in this year’s freshman class, it has commitments from three top-50 recruits in 2023 and the first Buckeye pledge for 2024 is yet another top-50 talent.
Chris Holtmann and company continued their recruiting roll Sunday by landing a commitment from Bishop Gorman point guard Juni Mobley, the No. 43 overall prospect in the country, seventh-ranked player at his position and No. 3 recruit in Nevada, per the 247Sports composite rankings. Mobley kickstarts what could be a third straight highly ranked recruiting class for the Buckeyes.
The Mobley File
- Class: 2024
- Size: 6-foot, 150 pounds
- Pos: PG
- School: Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nevada)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★
- Composite Rank: #43 (#7 PG)
The 6-foot-tall, 150-pound floor general announced his decision live on ESPN2 amid Sunday’s Geico Top Flight Invite event in Las Vegas, choosing Ohio State over Arizona State, LSU, Creighton, USC and Xavier.
“The main factors of why I chose Ohio State was their style of play and their coaches and the relationship I had with the coaches while I was there. And I talked to the players and they told me you can trust Holtmann, like he doesn’t lie,” Mobley told Eleven Warriors. “What they told them in the recruiting process is happening now, so I thought that was a big thing. I’m really big on trust, my family’s big on trust, so that was a main thing for me that helped me make that decision.”
Mobley is a Columbus native who moved to Las Vegas in 2020, but he began receiving notoriety for his skills on the hardwood well before that. One video of Mobley’s fifth-grade highlights drew nearly 600,000 views on YouTube, and his skills have only grown since then.
Widely considered one of the best shooters in the country, Mobley’s 3-point range and ball handling had spectators drawing early comparisons to Steph Curry when he played with Akron’s North Coast Blue Chips AAU team in 2018. Since moving to Nevada, Mobley has played AAU ball with Las Vegas Elite and is now entering his third season of high school hoops at Bishop Gorman.
Mobley still has plenty of time before he graduates, but it didn’t take long after his Oct. 1 official visit to Ohio State for the elite prospect to make up his mind about a college destination. Mobley had previously visited Creighton in September before returning to Columbus for a visit. Mobley also participated in Kingdom League action at Ohio Dominican University in Columbus over the summer.
“One thing I loved about the visit, the fans are just crazy. The football game started at 3:30 and the fans were in the line at 10. Like it was just crazy,” Mobley said. “Another thing that stood out was the practice. Seeing how the coaches practice and seeing how they hold their players accountable for mistakes and stuff like that.”
Mobleys pic.twitter.com/yU0RkFeyzq
— John Mobley Sr (@JohnMobleySr1) October 2, 2022
As Ohio State’s first 2024 commit, the program can build around a prospect who routinely knocks down 3-pointers well beyond the high school line – both contested and otherwise – and has an arsenal of one-legged leanback shots and fadeways from the outside as well. Mobley also facilitates offense for teammates when he’s not scoring the ball himself, and can play off the ball as a spot-up shooter from distance.
John Mobley Jr. UNCONSCIOUS from 3 @brdrleague pic.twitter.com/GOCtxhZq5V
— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) October 15, 2022
Mobley said his defensive prowess shouldn’t be overlooked either.
“I’m a shooter. I can shoot off the dribble, come off the screen, I can really shoot from anywhere,” Mobley said. “My defense, I play D. Not a lot of people know that until they play against me and they see that I’m locking them up. But I’m gonna come, do everything that I can to win, I’m gonna compete and I’m gonna try to get that natty.”
Growing up in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, Mobley said Ohio State was always his dream school. Mobley made that dream come true with his commitment, and it’s clear that his goals on the hardwood reach far past just becoming a Buckeye.
