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- Thread starter wadc45
- Start date
ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale said that there was one factor in particular that stood out. More specifically, one player stands out.
“The @OhioStateHoops (are) well coached by @ChrisHoltmann but they need a healthy transfer Seth Towns from Harvard who has knee problems,” Vitale tweeted. “He is a talented scorer who can shoot the 3. HIs scoring talents (are) needed since life in the (Big Ten) will be TOUGH!”
Towns enters this season as one of college basketball’s single biggest X-Factors. Ohio State looks good without him, thanks to the return of CJ Walker and Duane Washington in the backcourt, a third starter in Kyle Young in the front court and the development of sophomore EJ Liddell, along with California transfer Justice Sueing.
But Towns — who Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann said wasn’t likely to be at full strength when the season starts — is a bit of a mystery. If fully healthy at the end of the year, and if he’s playing at the level he did last time he played a full season, Towns is among college basketball’s best players. His last full season, he was Ivy League Player of the Year by averaging 16.0 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. At 6-foot-7 and 215 pounds, he shot 44.1% from behind the 3-point arc and 80.5% from the free throw line.
That’s the good news. The bad news is that Towns’ last action came during the 2017-18 season; he suffered a season-ending knee injury just before the start of his junior season, then didn’t play last year either, ending a potential comeback later in the year by having surgery in December.
That’s a long time off the court for a player to not only return, but come back and play at a high level. But Vitale's point is also accurate—should Towns return and play to his ability, it ups Ohio State's ceiling significantly because he's such a difficult player to match up with. Towns playing at the four, or even the five, would allow the Buckeyes to spread the court with shooting and ball movement, with several players who could take advantage of their matchups off the bounce in space as well.
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mendensa
Legend
Coming from a former competitve athlete, someone who trains athletes, and deals with orthopedic sports injuries as a profession, if he isn't 100% after that long of a lay-off, his knee isn't just magically going to get better as the season progresses and the wear and tear of a season builds.
I know OSU has a great medical staff and some of the best athletic trainers to attempt to get him back to 100%, but he hasn't played a competitive game in over 2 years and still isn't right?
TBH, this update caught me by surprise and is a bit concerning as we approach the start of the season.
I know OSU has a great medical staff and some of the best athletic trainers to attempt to get him back to 100%, but he hasn't played a competitive game in over 2 years and still isn't right?
TBH, this update caught me by surprise and is a bit concerning as we approach the start of the season.
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Onebuckfan
classof76
Is it a Todd Gurley situation..his knees will never be 100% again. Can the medical staff manage the swelling and pain. Will Seth want to go through this just to play again?
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