Hope for next season's Buckeye hoops team rest heavily on a guy who is never fazed by high expectations.
Would-be sophomore guard D'Angelo Russell has to weigh whether the opportunity to win a national title is greater than the millions he'll see as a high draft pick. With him, Ohio State would continue to reap the benefits of one of the nation's most dynamic scoring threats and challenge for a Big Ten title. Without Russell, OSU might not rise above the middle of the B1G standings.
Most capable freshmen end up declaring for the NBA Draft. Derrick Williams, Dion Waiters, Otto Porter, Cody Zeller and Alex Len are the only sophomores to go in the top five since 2010. None of them were guaranteed top five picks after their freshman seasons.
It's not completely unprecedented for a player of Russell's age and caliber to turn down the opportunity to enter the NBA Draft after one year, however. Buckeye fans know Jared Sullinger could have been a lottery selection had he left in 2011. The impending NBA lockout was a significant factor in swaying him to stay at Ohio State.
Still, Russell could follow Blake Griffin's lead and return despite assurances he'd be a top-five pick. Giving up the money and risking injury or further scrutiny turned out to be a good thing for Griffin, who was the consensus No. 1 overall choice of many before the Clippers picked him.
Harrison Barnes is another recent example of a player who eschewed the NBA Draft and still ended up being a top 10 selection – he could have been the top pick had he been allowed to enter straight from high school. Like Sullinger, Barnes was a freshman in 2011, and a lockout threatened his potential rookie season.
Russell would face no obstacle similar to Barnes and Sullinger's. The NBA is entering a new era of financial prosperity and a rising cap will eventually trickle down to the top young players in the league. Russell will still benefit financially, particularly if he's a top five selection. Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Joel Embiid, Aaron Gordon and Dante Exum will all earn salaries in excess of $3 million as top five picks in the 2014-15 draft.
Both DraftExpress and ESPN.com's Chad Ford have Russell as the No. 4 ranked player in the 2015 draft class. He has assuredly been the focus of many NBA front office debates among personnel who want a point guard in the draft.
Ford recently slid Emmanuel Mudiay (China) ahead of Russell in his most recent big board.
"It must be said that Russell's play of late hasn't been quite up to par. Since February, Russell is shooting just 20-for-58 from beyond the arc (34 percent), has 28 turnovers and Ohio State has gone just 5-4 in that stretch," Ford wrote, March 11. "He's still the most lethal wing scorer in the draft – and he's asked to shoulder a huge load at Ohio State – but he hasn't been great of late and to make the move to No. 1, he's got to be great."
Following the loss to Arizona, Russell offered a "no comment" when asked about his looming decision. He will have to decide by the early draft deadline of April 26. When asked about it during the Big Ten Tournament, he said he honestly doesn't know what he's going to do.
"Me and my family will make a decision of what's right for me and what's right for us as a family," he told Cleveland.com's Ari Wasserman. "I know it will all happen when the time comes. At this time in my life when people ask me about it, I just don't know."
Although entirely different circumstances, Russell might be inspired by Cardale Jones announcement and return to Columbus. Recent history dictates that is unlikely to happen.
