Ken
Guest
2015-2016 Men’s Basketball Player Profile: Mickey Mitchell
Ken via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
The Ohio State men’s basketball season is right around the corner. The upstart Buckeyes will take on Walsh in exhibition play on November 8th. To help get you ready for tip-off, The Buckeye Battle Cry will be bringing you Player Previews leading up to the beginning of the season. Today, we profile freshman Mickey Mitchell.
Mitchell’s path to Ohio State may have been “on-off-on”, but I feel that his commitment to the Buckeyes was always there. These were not the decisions of an indecisive teenager; these were decisions based on balancing commitment to his family and to Ohio State. Cleveland.com’s Bill Landis has the story:
Ken (Mickey’s father) suffers from cluster headaches, a rare disease with no known cure that debilitates sufferers with excruciatingly painful headaches up to nine times per day.
That’s what led Mike to leave Columbus and return closer to home, and what nearly made Mickey give up on being a Buckeye. Mickey committed to Ohio State in August 2013, decommitted a year later after Mike transferred, then recommitted to Ohio State last September.
Fortunately for Mickey, and the Ohio State program, Mickey received encouragement and support from family members to play at Ohio State, if that’s what he wanted to do.
Mickey Mitchell
Hometown: Plano, Texas
High School: Plano West
Position: Forward
Year: Freshman
Height: 6′-7″
Weight: 225
High School Awards
– Averaged 8.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists as Senior; 13.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 6.3 assists as Junior
– Per 247Sports, Mitchell is #119 player nationally and the #20 small forward.
– Also held offers from Baylor and Texas A&M
You’ll notice that his “numbers” dropped a bit in his Senior season. He was in the process of recovering from an injured ACL incurred while playing football.
At 6’7″ and 215-220’ish he’s a decent size player at “small” forward. However, there is a hint that Mitchell may bring something special to the team; again, per Bill Landis:
That’s what made Mitchell so enticing to Matta as a basketball player. Watch his highlight tapes on YouTube, and you’ll see a guard in a forward’s body, a player more interested in getting his teammates involved with flashy passes than he is in getting his own shot.
Another opinion on Mickey’s versatility is offered by no less than Ken Mitchell, Mickey’s father:
“If you look at his career, this is a kid who can score any time he wants to,” Ken said. “People think Mickey can’t shoot. But if you look at his high school team, guess who one of the leading three-point guys on his team is? It’s Mickey. He was 42 percent. That’s not bad.”
Strengths
Obviously, this is a bit too soon for me to have a good feel for this, but I think Mitchell’s strengths are his “team” mentality and his versatility. I attribute the team mentality by looking at his high school numbers and Bill Landis’ assessment. Despite his (injury induced, IMO) drop in scoring from junior to senior year, his rebounds and assists numbers were about the same. This tells me he wants to get the ball and he knows what to do with it, for the benefit of the team, once he has it.
Another strength, as I see it, is team-centered athleticism. Mickey has seven siblings, so he has learned to be assertive and to be cooperative. That is growing up in a competitive, yet supportive, team environment. He’s evidently had some experience in team success.
Weaknesses
I’m pretty hard pressed to come up with a weakness right now. If I have to guess (Joe tells me I’m contractually obligated to do so) I’ll go with Mickey learning to rebound at this level of ball. At his size, rebounding from the wing, or where ever Thad has him will be more challenging that what he faced at Plano West.
I’ll have to wait a few games into the season to see what develops.
Role on the Team
I see Mickey having a game similar to Sam Thompson, only without Sam’s “hops”. He brings a scoring and rebounding capability to the wing position. His ball-handling may be better than Sam’s. He won’t have the windmill dunks in his repertoire, but he seems to have a “spread it around” capability.
I think he can also fill the role of the “big” off-guard, if necessary. There may be circumstances where Thad wants/needs to have a big ball handler in his back-court, either for offensive or defenses match-ups. Regardless of what Thad sees as various player combinations, I think that Mickey can earn significant playing time this season.
The post 2015-2016 Men’s Basketball Player Profile: Mickey Mitchell appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
Continue reading...
Ken via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
The Ohio State men’s basketball season is right around the corner. The upstart Buckeyes will take on Walsh in exhibition play on November 8th. To help get you ready for tip-off, The Buckeye Battle Cry will be bringing you Player Previews leading up to the beginning of the season. Today, we profile freshman Mickey Mitchell.
Mitchell’s path to Ohio State may have been “on-off-on”, but I feel that his commitment to the Buckeyes was always there. These were not the decisions of an indecisive teenager; these were decisions based on balancing commitment to his family and to Ohio State. Cleveland.com’s Bill Landis has the story:
Ken (Mickey’s father) suffers from cluster headaches, a rare disease with no known cure that debilitates sufferers with excruciatingly painful headaches up to nine times per day.
That’s what led Mike to leave Columbus and return closer to home, and what nearly made Mickey give up on being a Buckeye. Mickey committed to Ohio State in August 2013, decommitted a year later after Mike transferred, then recommitted to Ohio State last September.
Fortunately for Mickey, and the Ohio State program, Mickey received encouragement and support from family members to play at Ohio State, if that’s what he wanted to do.
Mickey Mitchell
Hometown: Plano, Texas
High School: Plano West
Position: Forward
Year: Freshman
Height: 6′-7″
Weight: 225
High School Awards
– Averaged 8.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists as Senior; 13.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 6.3 assists as Junior
– Per 247Sports, Mitchell is #119 player nationally and the #20 small forward.
– Also held offers from Baylor and Texas A&M
You’ll notice that his “numbers” dropped a bit in his Senior season. He was in the process of recovering from an injured ACL incurred while playing football.
At 6’7″ and 215-220’ish he’s a decent size player at “small” forward. However, there is a hint that Mitchell may bring something special to the team; again, per Bill Landis:
That’s what made Mitchell so enticing to Matta as a basketball player. Watch his highlight tapes on YouTube, and you’ll see a guard in a forward’s body, a player more interested in getting his teammates involved with flashy passes than he is in getting his own shot.
Another opinion on Mickey’s versatility is offered by no less than Ken Mitchell, Mickey’s father:
“If you look at his career, this is a kid who can score any time he wants to,” Ken said. “People think Mickey can’t shoot. But if you look at his high school team, guess who one of the leading three-point guys on his team is? It’s Mickey. He was 42 percent. That’s not bad.”
Strengths
Obviously, this is a bit too soon for me to have a good feel for this, but I think Mitchell’s strengths are his “team” mentality and his versatility. I attribute the team mentality by looking at his high school numbers and Bill Landis’ assessment. Despite his (injury induced, IMO) drop in scoring from junior to senior year, his rebounds and assists numbers were about the same. This tells me he wants to get the ball and he knows what to do with it, for the benefit of the team, once he has it.
Another strength, as I see it, is team-centered athleticism. Mickey has seven siblings, so he has learned to be assertive and to be cooperative. That is growing up in a competitive, yet supportive, team environment. He’s evidently had some experience in team success.
Weaknesses
I’m pretty hard pressed to come up with a weakness right now. If I have to guess (Joe tells me I’m contractually obligated to do so) I’ll go with Mickey learning to rebound at this level of ball. At his size, rebounding from the wing, or where ever Thad has him will be more challenging that what he faced at Plano West.
I’ll have to wait a few games into the season to see what develops.
Role on the Team
I see Mickey having a game similar to Sam Thompson, only without Sam’s “hops”. He brings a scoring and rebounding capability to the wing position. His ball-handling may be better than Sam’s. He won’t have the windmill dunks in his repertoire, but he seems to have a “spread it around” capability.
I think he can also fill the role of the “big” off-guard, if necessary. There may be circumstances where Thad wants/needs to have a big ball handler in his back-court, either for offensive or defenses match-ups. Regardless of what Thad sees as various player combinations, I think that Mickey can earn significant playing time this season.
The post 2015-2016 Men’s Basketball Player Profile: Mickey Mitchell appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
Continue reading...