Midway Through His Junior Season, Marc Loving is Still Very Much an Enigma

At one point during Ohio State's embarrassing 35-point loss to Maryland last Saturday, Marc Loving unleashed a haymaker on a chair after his removal from the game. 

For most players such an act wouldn't draw much attention but for Loving, a guy who's attitude and desire to be great has been questioned his entire Buckeye career, it was easy to mock. 

It's not out of the ordinary for a player to become a target or poster boy for fans with frustration fueled passion, rightly or wrongly – just ask Amir Williams – but in Loving's case it is an unusual situation considering his status as the team's leading scorer, reaching double figures in 15 of 19 games so far this season. 

So how did we get to this point?

Arriving in Columbus by way of Toledo as a four-star prospect and two-time Associated Press Ohio Player of the Year, Loving entered the program with sky-high expectations. 

Loving didn't play much as a true freshman on a mediocre Buckeye team that went 25-10 with the bulk of swingman minutes going to LaQuinton Ross and Sam Thompson but showed enough to give fans hope for what he could become with more seasoning. 

As expected, Loving's minutes more than doubled during his sophomore campaign and he largely took advantage of the opportunity through the first 22 games. During that stretch which took him through the end of January, Loving put up solid stats against some of the better teams on the schedule. 

Against 5th-ranked Louisville in early December, Loving went for 13 points and six rebounds despite an awful opening half and after a slew of cupcakes he tallied 19 points and four rebounds in a loss to 24th-ranked North Carolina. 

Toward the end of January in back-to-back games against ranked foes Loving went for 12 and five in a win over 23rd-ranked Indiana and followed that up with arguably his best performance of the year with 19 points on 7/11 shooting including a perfect 5/5 from downtown with six rebounds and just one turnover in a blowout of 16th-ranked Maryland. 

Six days later, Thad Matta suspended Loving for the proverbial violation of team rules. The discipline would stretch three games before Loving got back on the court but the impact the situation had on Loving's mental state and production would last the remaining 10 games of the season. 

A non-factor for the Buckeyes, Loving reached double figures just once down the homestretch on 14/42 shooting (33%) with two assists against eight turnovers. 

Already in the crosshairs of some fans thanks to the perception of an aloof demeanor, Loving's body language grew increasingly sour and rumors of marijuana use triggering the suspension didn't help his cause. 

Still, when the dust settled on Loving's tumultuous sophomore season, he proved a legit offensive threat shooting 46% from both the field and beyond the arc to go along with a solid 77% from the stripe leading many to believe he could potentially bust out this season if he had his head on straight. 

With a roster full of freshmen and sophomores, Loving entered his junior season as Ohio State's most accomplished returning player and with a chance to dismiss the stigma as a guy who supposedly doesn't show the desire to be a great player, the makeup to be a team leader or the fire to take over a game and/or will his team to victory. 

Though there are many reasons for Ohio State's disappointing 12-7 record, Loving hasn't exactly done a ton to make some fans reconsider their stance on him as an enigmatic underachiever. 

To his credit, Loving is leading the team in scoring, has realized an uptick in his rebounding (.167 reb/min TY compared to .152 reb/min LY) and is definitely showing more emotion on the court. The downside is he's achieving the scoring numbers as a volume shooter as evidenced by his plummeting shooting percentages compared to last year when he wasn't asked to take on such an expanded role. 

He hasn't been spectacular against the better teams on Ohio State's schedule as shown in the chart above though he did reach double figures in the first seven games against KenPom Top 75 opponents until he flamed out missing seven of eight shots with two turnovers in last Saturday afternoon's Terrapin blitzkrieg. 

Now two and a half years into his Buckeye career, maybe it's time to realize what Loving is versus lamenting what he is not. 

At 6'8", it's fair to wish he was a better shooter than 43% from the floor for his career-to-date but considering his numbers this year (43.2%) versus last (45.9%), it's probably best to assume 45% or so is his ceiling when asked to take 10+ shots per game. He's not the first guy to be streaky shooter, it just stands out more on a team needing him to be consistent to have a chance at victory against better competition. 

On the attitude front, his demeanor may not give off the vibe of a leader but it's not necessarily his fault the roster's current construction puts that burden on his shoulders. The fact is Loving's disposition is virtually unchanged since his arrival so how realistic is it to be expect him to be a fiery general on the floor? 

The reality is that Loving will most likely fail to reach expectations, fair or not, that came with his high school accolades. If he's the third scorer on a team, that team is probably in business but if his role is to consistently be the leading scorer and manage the team's psyche as the de facto team leader then it's probably going to yield a less than desirable outcome. 

None of this is written to defend or trash Marc Loving. It's simply a commentary on what I see as his current reality in hopes fans can come to grips with what Loving is instead of being so frustrated for what he isn't because there's little evidence to suggest any wild deviation from what we've seen since his arrival in 2013.