NBA draft combine: Ohio State's Sullinger has his critics
By Bob Finnan
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@BobCavsinsider
All he keeps hearing about are the black marks on his scouting profile.
Critics say the former Ohio State star can't jump, is too short, too heavy, can't shoot from long distance and won't be able to defend power forwards in the NBA.
Are we leaving out anything?
Next they'll be making fun of his haircut.
"Everybody points out all the negatives," Sullinger said at the NBA draft combine in Chicago last week. "There are a lot of positive things I think I do."
The Columbus native's range in the draft is vast. He's expected to be drafted somewhere between No. 6 overall to somewhere in the mid-teens.
He measured out well in Chicago. He's 6-foot-9 in shoes and 6-7 3/4 without shoes. Sullinger weighs 268 pounds and has a 7-1 1/4 wingspan.
He said his ideal weight is between 255 to 270. He uses his wide body as a battering ram to establish position in the paint. His bulk allowed him to score over larger players in the Big Ten.
Sullinger, 20, averaged 17.5 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game as a sophomore with the Buckeyes.
All he did at Ohio State was win. He won or shared the Big Ten title both years with the program and finished 63-10 as a starter. The Buckeyes advanced to the Final Four in March before they lost to Kansas in the national semifinals.
Sullinger hopes he swayed some doubters with his performance at the combine.
"A lot of people have been sleeping on me, and it's kind of fun," he said. "All my life I've kind of been known as the underdog.
"People said I wasn't going to be able to play at the college level, and I did. Some people said I wasn't going to be able to play at the high school level. Some people said I was too overweight to play at the middle school level. I'm used to it."
Sullinger said he loves proving people wrong.
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