Colin White is No. 10 in our Ohio State men's basketball preseason power rankings

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Colin White is No. 10 in our Ohio State men's basketball preseason power rankings

Adam Jardy, Columbus Dispatch

Mon, Oct 21, 2024 ·

7 min read

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The first year of the Jake Diebler era will feature the most scholarship players in Ohio State men's basketball history .

Technically, the Buckeyes will feature a full complement of 13 scholarship players for the 2024-25 season. Yet as Ohio State has built its roster for the year and sustained a summer injury to a projected rotation player, first-year coach Jake Diebler was able to add one more piece to the puzzle as a walk-on whose NIL compensation will cover the costs of enrolling at Ohio State.

Projected to finish eighth in the annual unofficial media poll conducted jointly by The Dispatch and The Indianapolis Star , the Buckeyes aim to return to the NCAA Tournament after missing out during each of the last two seasons. Ohio State went 22-14 last season as Diebler was named coach after having taking over midseason on an interim basis.

Sifting through a 16-man roster featuring nine new faces including two walk-ons requires effort, and The Dispatch has you covered. To get ready for the season, The Dispatch is once again rolling out its annual preseason power rankings. Each weekday leading into the Nov. 4 season opener against Texas in Las Vegas , we will count upward while projecting which players will have the biggest roles on the 2023-24 season. This isn't just a measurement of who will lead the team in any particular statistical category, but a series of educated guesses on which players' contributions will go the longest way toward where the Buckeyes finish.

The series continues today with freshman forward Colin White.

No. 10 – Colin White

Position: Forward

Eligibility: First year (three remaining)

Height/weight: 6 feet 6 / 205 pounds

Jersey number: 20

Major: Mechanical engineering

Jul 9, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes forward Colin White shoots during a summer workout in the practice gym at the Schottenstein Center.

Background

At Ottawa-Glandorf, White was a first-team all-state pick as a junior and senior . He was named Ohio Mr. Basketball as a senior after averaging 25.1 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.6 steals. As a junior, White averaged 20.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He became the all-time leading scorer both at his school and in Putnam County and was a three-year team captain.

One of eight Ohioans on the 2024-25 roster, White committed to Ohio State during the summer before his senior year after working for years to land a scholarship offer from the Buckeyes. A frequent visitor to campus, White was told by Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann and associate coach Jake Diebler that he would have to improve in a few areas in order to earn that offer from Ohio State.

During the spring and summer after his junior year, White put in work on his defense, improved his shooting touch and earned that offer from the Buckeyes . He then announced a list of finalists including Butler, Cincinnati, Ohio State, Northwestern and TCU before committing to the Buckeyes in mid-August . He's the first Division I basketball player from Ottawa-Glandorf since Noah Bramlage signed with Princeton in the class of 2015.

White was eating lunch at school on Valentine's Day when he got a call from Diebler letting him know that Holtmann had been fired. The news caught White off guard, but he remained committed to Ohio State as the school began a search for its next coach. Once Diebler was hired as the full-time coach, White reaffirmed his commitment to the program.

White finished as a three-star prospect, the No. 4 prospect in Ohio, the No. 28 small forward and the overall No. 136 player in the 2024 class according to 247Sports.com.

"It's been great having Colin in this program," Diebler said during Ohio State's fall media day. "I just love how much he cares about Ohio State. As a starting point, you feel that in practice. He plays hard every day. He's very coachable. There's an element of toughness to him and winning."

Need to know

White is one of only two players to have been a starter on a state semifinal team for all four years of high school. The other is LeBron James. The two have never met, but White downplayed the significance of that fact.

"I don't see big deals out of that thing, but everyone kind of made it a big deal," he said. "My support, family, coaches were all like, 'That's crazy. You don't understand.' I was like, 'I guess I don't.' "

White played in the Kingdom Summer League in 2024 and scored 20 points in his debut . He also played in the same league as Ohio State sophomore center Austin Parks. When Ohio State beat No. 2 Purdue in Diebler's first game as interim coach, White was in the stands and stormed the floor with the fans.

Jun 30, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State freshmen Sean Stewart and Colin White watch the action during the Kingdom Summer League basketball program at Ohio Dominican University.

While in high school, White was also a talented baseball player who gave up the sport during his senior year to focus fully on preparing for Ohio State. During basketball season, White said he autographed unusual things including a pair of Crocs and a forehead.

His mother, Sandy Buddelmeyer, was a three-time all-American at Capital University and remains the school's all-time leader in both scoring and rebounding . From 1990-93, she scored 2,248 points and grabbed 1,365 rebounds and also holds the single-game and season records in both categories.

White's coach at Ottawa-Glandorf, Tyson McGlaughlin, was an English teacher who also taught Ohio State's Aaron Craft at Liberty-Benton for two years.

"There's so many similarities between those two, just the way they handle themselves, the way people gravitate towards them, the way they lead," McGlaughlin said.

Craft and D'Angelo Russell are two of White's all-time favorite Buckeyes.

Jul 9, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Jake Diebler defends forward Colin White during a summer workout in the practice gym at the Schottenstein Center.

2024-25 season outlook

White made a quick impression upon his arrival at Ohio State by showcasing a significant work ethic. Despite his youth, White has established himself as a gritty, everyday-type of player who fits into the culture Diebler has spoken of building within the program.

"He's always full-go, 100%," junior wing Evan Mahaffey said. "It's great to see, honestly. You see a guy come in with that kind of passion and it inspires you as well."

Despite that, White faces an uphill battle for playing time that is typical for most freshmen, especially in this era of college basketball. He's improved his shooting and made early strides, but on the wing he looks to be behind a slew of veterans on the depth chart. Fifth-year senior Micah Parrish and Mahaffey figure to take the majority of the playing time at small forward, and the Buckeyes are likely to utilize three-guard lineups featuring some combinations of Meechie Johnson Jr., Bruce Thornton, sixth-year transfer Ques Glover, freshman John "Juni" Mobley Jr. and Parrish.

It's most likely that White spends much of the season as the first player just outside the primary playing rotation. Even with sophomore Kentucky transfer Aaron Bradshaw sidelined, White saw the third-least playing time in Ohio State's charity exhibition loss at Cincinnati. While nine Buckeyes were on the floor for at least 15:26, White missed one 3-pointer and had a steal in 7:19.

He will impact Ohio State's 2024-25 season, but it might not primarily be when there are fans in the stands.

"He's got to continue to work on the defensive side," Diebler said. "That's an adjustment for him because in high school he might've had to guard bigger guys and now in college he has to guard smaller guys at times. I've been impressed with his summer and start to the preseason here this fall."