Ohio State's new pieces have continued their summer settling-in process.
Two of the most important additions, those being former Duke forward Sean Stewart and San Diego State wing Micah Parrish, met with Ohio State media for the first time on Thursday.
Both Stewart and Parrish are eager to prove they're larger offensive threats than they've been able to show to this point in their careers. Stewart's pre-existing relationship with and the trust he's felt from Jake Diebler were his main draws to Ohio State, while Parrish wanted to be closer to home and have a bigger platform to showcase he's a legitimate NBA prospect.
Before Stewart and Parrish took to the stage in the Schottenstein Center, Devin Royal met with the media and said that 3-point shooting has been the “main focal point” of his offseason and that he's excited to have the ball in his hands more in 2024-25.
Devin Royal
- On why he returned to Ohio State: "Just the role and what (Diebler) planned for me this year coming up. ... Me and him have a great relationship."
- One of the major differences for Royal in this year's Ohio State offense is that he expects to be "having the ball in my hands more."
- Royal expects to add a major perimeter threat to his game for next year. "That's my main focal point coming into next year, is being able to shoot the ball."
- Royal said he's felt the bonds grow between the players on the Buckeyes' roster with so many new faces over the previous few weeks. "These past few weeks we've been hanging out a lot."
- On playing alongside Stewart and Parrish: "It's great working beside them. Micah coming in is a guy who had a lot of experience already. ... It's good how all of us can learn from each other and we don't have big egos."
- He, Bruce Thornton and Evan Mahaffey are among the holdovers from last year's roster that have assumed a big leadership role, Royal said. "A lot of guys don't know everything that's going on ... us three are teaching them the way."
- On what he showed the last 10 to 12 games of the season: "I think it went better than the beginning of the season. ... Still a lot more to show for sure."
- On freshman wing Colin White: "He's got a lot of heart, a lot of momentum coming in. ... He plays hard."
- On what he's seen from Stewart and transfer center Aaron Bradshaw: "I definitely see them coming in, they've put in great energy, great work."
- On his desire to win at Ohio State as a kid from Ohio: "First coming here, I always wanted to leave a legacy and this is the perfect opportunity. ... We all want to win so badly."
Sean Stewart
- On what sold him on Ohio State: "In the transfer portal, it's such a different landscape than when you're coming out of high school. Me and family really valued previous relationships. ... I really trust (Diebler), he trusts me."
- Stewart felt a change of scenery was needed. "I feel like I'm really able to grow here."
- Stewart is confident Ohio State can become a high-achieving program like he witnessed while at Duke. "Diebler, he has really high aspirations, big goals for us and I feel like we can accomplish those goals."
- On what he learned from Duke's veteran big men: "They always pulled me aside and kept me level-headed, kept me positive. It was really good to learn from them this offseason."
- Stewart is excited to showcase what he can do scoring in all areas of the floor with a bigger role. "In high school, I don't know if you guys watched, I was a lot of midrange jump shots and some 3-pointers. I've really been working all summer on my 3-point shot. Diebler, he really trusts me to shoot, he gets mad at me when I don't shoot the ball."
- On his impressions of Ohio State before entering the portal: "My junior year (of high school) I watched a lot of Ohio State basketball ... my teammate Brice Sensabaugh was here. ... How big the fanbase is, how much love everybody here gets. I know that if we're a good team, everybody will support and show love."
- On why he improved in the second half of last season: "I accepted my role in the team. ... I just did everything I could to get on the court ... I just tried to do as much as I could. ... Playing as hard as I could in practice, whether I was on scout team or got reps with the first five."
- While he can guard centers and play great interior defense, Stewart is eager to remind people that he can make plays all over the floor. "I know a lot of people still think that I'm a good player. ... I'm not a low-post player, I want to show everybody that I can step out, shoot the 3, shoot midranges."
- On what it's like to be paired with Aaron Bradshaw, who he played with in the McDonald's All-American game in high school: "He's a really goofy dude, he gets along with everybody. ... We never thought we'd really get to team up again ... it's going to be really exciting to play with him again."
Micah Parrish
- On why he came to Ohio State: "It was the ability to be closer to home, that was one of the big things for me ... but also my ability to get to the next level."
- Parrish, an NCAA Tournament runner-up with the Aztecs, believes the Buckeyes can win a lot of games in 2024-25. "That's one of the reasons I came here. I looked at the team, looked at the coaching staff ... I feel like this is somewhere we could win out."
- On his gritty play style: "At San Diego State I was known as the tone setter. I set the tone on defense. ... That's something I'm looking to do here."
- On his role in Ohio State's offense: "I think I'm going to show a lot of people that I can score a lot more than what I've shown the last few years."
- Even before he got the inkling to transfer to Columbus, the Buckeyes were held in a high esteem in Parrish's mind. "I grew up wanting to be in the Big Ten. I know the atmosphere that the Big Ten can have and that Ohio State can have."
- On what separated Diebler's Ohio State from other competitors in his transfer portal recruitment: "He believed in me. He believed that I'm a pro. ... We was on the phone, facetime, messaging all the time. I didn't even take an official visit here before I committed, that's how much I believed in him."
