With three of his four freshmen ditching Columbus, Thad Matta and Ohio State are left in the lurch, shrugging shoulders and pointing fingers. Rationalized as the inevitable consequence of recruiting five-star players by the ever growing basketball cogniscienti, unfortunately this predicament is recognized by scant few as the result of the myopic recruiting strategy in vogue in Columbus. Playing the lottery, many believed Matta hit the powerball when he inked 60% of Mike Conley, Sr.’s Indy SPIECE Heat AAU team, led by Greg Oden, Mike Conley and Daequan Cook. When recruited, it was evident the three freshman were talented enough to play in NBA, in Oden’s case, immediately. Throughout the season, however, no observer outside the players’ inner circle anticipated all three freshmen would bolt Columbus. While it became evident Cook unsatisfied with his perceived treatment within Matta’s offense, Conley flourished as the quickest and smartest player on the floor. The opportunity given by a strong NCAA was taken by Conley without hesitation.
While Matta may not have anticipated a mass exodus, it is incumbent upon him to learn from it. Regrettably for fans of the prgram, what remains unsettled and more disconcerting than mass NBA defections is the ultimate direction of the Ohio State program under Matta. Viewing Matta’s penchant for recruiting high school freshmen and any five-star recruit that gives him a wink, Buckeye fans must learn to cope with a revolving door of players who bear as much allegiance to Ohio State as Stephon Marbury cares about Georgia Tech. Issues of how these players are integrated into an ostensible program where the coach develops them into a cohesive team remain unresolved.
So Long, We Hardly Knew You
Matta has often called the Oden class the foundation of the program. After one season, the foundation is gone. A bushel and a peck of wins this season reinforced the perception that Matta was a recruiting genius. Like Randy Ayers before him who once upon a time basked in the glow of another All-American, Toledo’s Jimmy Jackson, while garnering Coach of the Year accolades and Dick Vitale’s praise along the way, Thad Matta has risen to the perceived upper echelon of college basketball coaches. Not only do Ohio State fans apparently have to live with Matta’s impatient, undisciplined and inconsistent offense, they’ll need to live with one and done. Ultimately, time will tell whether Matta’s formula is one of long term success or an abberation.
One thing however is certain: Ohio State’s program is becoming a revolving door of AAU talent assembled for a quick grab. Some may rationalize this reality as an inevitable consequence of recruiting the best players in the country. Perhaps. Players leave Carolina and Duke, some due to over-recruitment some to the NBA. But perhaps also there is something more rewarding than simply recruiting as many five-star recruits as possible. Perhaps an opportunity exists to attain something more elusive than the cheap wins attained by rolling out the ball and letting the fellas play. Building a program means more than creating a showboat where budding NBA players chase co-eds for a quarter or two while supposedly going to class if their basketball schedule permits.
Incumbent in developing a basketball program is the creation of an identity. Unfortunately, if Ohio State is creating one, it resembles Memphis not North Carolina. If Matta persists on the current path, recruit the best without trepidation for the consequence, he will have led Ohio State into its role as a minor league franchise for David Stern. One and done will become the norm, not the exception. And Ohio State fans will be left holding an empty bag of promises and commitments.
