Ohio State's frontcourt got a big boost – figuratively and literally – on Monday.
Former Kentucky center Aaron Bradshaw, who stands at 7-1, committed to the Buckeyes out of the transfer portal on Monday.
Bradshaw is considered the No. 5 center and No. 23 prospect overall in the 247Sports' transfer portal rankings. A rising sophomore, he'll come to Columbus with three years of eligibility remaining.
The Bradshaw File
- Year: Sophomore
- Size: 7-1/226
- Pos: Center
- School: Kentucky (2023-24)
- Stats: 4.9 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 0.7 BPG
As recruiting pedigrees go, there's not a much more talented prospect Jake Diebler could have added to his roster. Bradshaw was considered a five-star prospect in the 247Sports composite rankings, the No. 4 overall recruit and No. 1 center, coming out of high school in 2023.
Bradshaw played 26 games as a freshman at Kentucky and started 10 of them, all before February. He scored 4.9 points per game to go with 3.3 rebounds and 0.7 blocks per contest, all in just 13.7 minutes per game.
Hailing from New Jersey, Ohio State was not involved in Bradshaw's initial recruitment out of high school but mutual interest started percolating between the two sides after his entry into the portal. He visited campus during the Buckeyes' football spring game on Saturday.
Bradshaw figures to provide support to returning starting center Felix Okpara, who announced his return to Ohio State on April 1. Sophomore forward Devin Royal, sophomore center Austin Parks and redshirt junior forward Kalen Etzler round out the team's current roster in the frontcourt.
Ohio State will still likely add a wing player from the portal to help replace Jamison Battle and Scotty Middleton, the former exhausting his eligibility and the latter entering the transfer portal. The Buckeyes are likely to add someone who can provide a 3-point threat, which could either be another frontcourt player at power forward or more of a small forward type of body.
Bradshaw showed limited shooting potential with the Wildcats, going 4-of-14 (28.6%) from deep in his first season.
Diebler and company are also still likely to add a guard from the portal to replace the losses of Dale Bonner, Middleton, Bowen Hardman and starting shooting guard Roddy Gayle Jr. The Buckeyes have already added Meechie Johnson Jr., a former Buckeye, from South Carolina to fill Gayle's spot in the starting lineup.
Ohio State has two open scholarship spots remaining for the 2024-25 season.
