Former coach Thad Matta coached countless players in his 13 years at the helm of the Scarlet and Gray hoops squad, but not all college basketball players move on to the NBA. Here are the top five players in the NBA who played under Matta at Ohio State.
5. Jared Sullinger, CENTER/POWER FORWARD
Sullinger's career at Ohio State was rather spectacular given the two years he played for the Scarlet and Gray. Sullinger averaged over 17 points per game and led the Bucks to a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2011 and a Final Four berth in 2012 before departing for the NBA.
A five-star recruit out of high school, Sullinger seemed like he was on the way to being an NBA star before concerns were raised about his back issues. These concerns seemed to be well-founded as Sullinger struggled to find a place in the NBA.
Selected 21st overall by the Boston Celtics, Sullinger averaged almost 20 minutes a night (in 45 games) as a rookie, but put up only 6 points per game. In his second season, he took a huge step forward and averaged 13 points and eight rebounds a night in 74 games.
In 2014, Sullinger maintained that same level of production in 58 games, averaging 13 points once again and 7.6 rebounds.
In the 2015 season, however, Sullinger found himself being waned out of the Celtics' lineup and dropped to just over 10 points per game. Despite a career-high 8.3 rebounds a night, that would be his last season with Boston.
In this past season, Sullinger found himself hanging on to the Raptors' roster, but he put career lows in nearly every statistical category and played only 11 games (one start) for the Toronto squad.
Sullinger might get a look when training camp begins for the 2017-2018 season, but it seems the NBA has passed him by as he is a tweener in size between power forward and center at 6-foot-9 and lacks an outside shot (27.2% from three in his career).
4. Kosta Koufos, Center
Koufos was a one-and-done at Ohio State, but he did lead the squad to an NIT championship in his lone year. He was named the championship game's MVP and then declared for the NBA draft after the 2008 season.
Koufos was selected 23rd overall by the Utah Jazz, but his NBA career was littered with trades in the beginning. Koufos played in the NBA D-League for much of his first year and got some playoff time, but only averaged just over three points and two rebounds for the Jazz before being traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
After 39 games, Koufos was traded again, this time as part of the huge trade that got Carmelo Anthony from the Nuggets to the Knicks. When the dust cleared, Koufos landed in Denver, and it was there that he really started to get his footing.
He played only 11 games after being traded during the 2010-2011 season, but showed enough promise that the Nuggets kept him around. In 2012-2013, Koufos was extended for three years and $9 million by the Nuggets. That same year, he saw a career high in minutes per game, which led his stats to all jump with him. Koufos averaged a career-high eight points and nearly seven rebounds per game for the Nuggets that year.
In 2013, the Greek center was traded once again, this time to the Memphis Grizzlies. What he lacked in flash he made up for in consistency, and in two seasons with Memphis he averaged right around six points and five rebounds a night off the bench.
After the 2012-2013 season, Koufos signed four-year, $32 million contract with the Sacramento Kings, and he's been playing there since. He's also kept his consistency as he moved out west, and has averaged six and half points and 5 and a half rebounds a night with Sacramento.
While Koufos' Buckeye career might have only brought the program an NIT championship, he seems to have found a good place in the NBA as a bench contributor. Koufos, a seven-footer, hasn't shied away from his game and has been an efficient scorer at over 53% shooting for his career. Also, he's earned over $30 million in nine years in the NBA. That number will increase to nearly $50 million if he plays out his current contract with the Kings.
3. D'Angelo Russell, Guard
Ohio State might have been on the way down when Russell made his one-year stop in Columbus, but he made fans ooh and ah at his playmaking ability for the Scarlet and Gray. In fact, he played so well that he was selected second overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2015 NBA draft.
Since then, Russell has shown promise, but hasn't exactly become the superstar that many thought he might have been. In an NBA where shooting has become more and more important, Russell certainly seems to have the skills to be a very good player for a very long time, but he hasn't blossomed into a star yet.
The Louisville native has averaged over 14 points per game in his two years in the Association and increased his averages in points, assists, rebounds and steals per game from year one to year two. He also improved his free throw percentage five percentage points in his second-year campaign.
While Russell certainly has the ability to top this list one day, he doesn't yet have the body of work or tenure to claim a higher ranking.
2. Evan Turner, Shooting guard/Small ForwARD
Turner, like Russell, was selected second overall after leaving Ohio State. However, Turner stayed three years in Columbus (as opposed to Russell's one) and, of course, has that shot that no one can ever forget over That School Up North.
However, despite his greatness at the NCAA level, he hasn't been a star in the NBA. That's not to say he hasn't been a good pro, though.
Turner was selected second overall in 2010 by the Philadelphia 76ers, and showed some promise as a rookie. He averaged just over seven points per game and nearly four rebounds in his rookie campaign, and consistently improved those averages until 2014, his best campaign.
In the 2013-2014 season, Turner, an impending free agent, played 54 games for the Sixers before being traded to the Pacers. In those 54 games, Turner averaged 17 points (career high), while also contributing six rebounds and nearly four assists per game.
Once traded to Indiana, though, the magic seemed to fade. In 27 games (two starts) for the Pacers, Turner averaged seven points, three rebounds and two assists. Despite this, Turner had already seemed to found his place in the NBA. He wasn't a star, but he was a solid contributor off the bench.
After the 2014 season, Turner signed with the Boston Celtics. In two seasons in Beantown he averaged 10 points and five assists while starting less than half of the games he played in.
At the end of the 2016 season, Turner was a free agent once again, and at a very prime time. With the salary cap increasing hugely after the 2016 season, Turner was able to secure a four year, $70 million contract from the Trailblazers. In his one season so far, Turner played close to his career averages and got nine points and four rebounds per game.
To date, Turner has earned over $43 million. If he plays out his contract with Portland, which expires in 2020, that number will be nearly $100 million.
1. Mike Conley, Point Guard
When making this list, Conley was the single no-brainer. He's a bona fide star in the NBA and has been one of the best players on multiple playoff teams. In addition, he's also got the most valuable contract in the NBA , so it's not just Buckeye faithful who have taken note of Conley's talent.
Longtime Buckeye fans will remember the Conley and Greg Oden led Buckeye squad making it to the NCAA Championship game and falling short to the Florida Gators. Both those players went on to be selected in the top five of the 2007 NBA draft, and Conley has lived up to his selection.
Since being selected fourth overall by the Memphis Grizzlies, Conley has consistently improved and played in under 70 games only three times. Conley also improved his points per game each year until the 2013-2014 season where he averaged over 17 a night. From 2014-2016 Conley seemed to hit a rough stretch where he played less than 70 games a season and averaged around 15 points per game while he was on the floor.
In 2016-2017 though, he came back stronger than ever and set a new career high for points per game (20.5), three point percentage (40.7%) and free throws per game (5.3). He also bested his career averages in rebounds, assists and free throw percentage.
Conley has been lucky to play by other talented players like Marc Gasol, but that shouldn't take away from the fact that in his nine years in the Association, Conley's teams have only missed the playoffs three times and those were in his first three years in the league.
It's not just getting to the playoffs, either. Conley has averaged over 16 points per game in playoff competition, and set a new career high at almost 25 points per game this season in addition to averaging almost seven assists a night in his playoff career.
Money might not dictate how good a player is, but the $82 million Conley has banked so far in his career certainly doesn't hurt. Should he complete his contract with the Grizz, Conley's career earnings will skyrocket to over $200 million.
