Ohio State recruiting: State Secrets, 6/26 - Nike Skills Academy updates

Today is the last of the three day Nike point guard skills academy and big man skills academy going on at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. Most of the nation's top high school and college ball players are in attendance, including Buckeyes guard Aaron Craft and current verbal commit D'Angelo Russell. The 6-4 180 pound left handed Russell committed to Ohio State earlier this month over the likes of Louisville and Michigan State and was a key part of a Montverde Academy squad that went 27-2.

Class of 2015 point guard Isaiah Briscoe is also attending the point guard academy. Hall of Fame basketball writer Frank Burlinson recently told Land-Grant Holy Land that the 6-3 210 pound five star prospect is one of the best scorers in high school basketball regardless of class and plays as physically as you will see at that level. Isaiah has a offer list to back it up, The Buckeyes, Arizona, Syracuse and Indiana are just a few of the schools trying to add his skill set to the mix. Phil Booth, former Mount St. Joes (MD) teammate and good friend of incoming freshman guard Kam Williams, is also on hand at the camp.

Now let's switch gears to the bigs: most of the current post players that have interest from the Buckeyes are also in New Jersey going up against each other. Class of 2014 prospects Elbert Robinson, Myles Turner, Craig Victor and 2015 center Elijah Thomas are all there learning from former first round picks Amar'e Stoudemire of the New York Knicks and New Orleans Pelican, Anthony Davis.

You've probably heard the saying "Everything is bigger in Texas," and with Robinson that is most definitely the truth. He is a mountain of a man who stands over 6-11 and near 300 pounds but is still very light on his feet for his size. Robinson, who plans to commit in the fall, has had an impressive summer, Including averaging 10 points and six rebounds at the recent NBPA Top 100 camp. So far he is sporting offers from OSU, Georgetown, Louisville, Kansas, and others. He has yet to visit Columbus but plans to check out Louisville next month.

Here are some highlights of Robinson in action:

Myles Turner was offered earlier this month after being on the Buckeye recruiting board for quite some time. The 6-11 230 pound Turner is also from the Longhorn state and has recently watched his rankings sky rocket on most recruiting sites after being one of the most dominate players at the NBPA camp in Virginia. The Bucks are joined by high profile program like Baylor, Kansas, Texas and UConn. According to the 247Composite Rankings, he is now the 20th best player in his class, the second center and the fifth top talent in Texas.

I caught up with Zach Fleer of Scarberry Media who had a chance to watch Turner in action earlier this month at the aforementioned NBPA Top 100 Camp and had him break down what he thought of Myles:

"Myles was the biggest rising star at the camp, even drew comparisons to Anthony Davis. Turner was able to run the floor with ease and was a lock down defender on the block. In my opinion, he was the best post defender in a talented pool of power forwards and centers. On offense, Turner was money anywhere from 17-feet and in, he has NBA potential."

Craig Victor is a name you are starting to hear floating around more and more when it comes to Ohio State basketball recruiting. Standing 6-8 and well over 200 pounds, the long armed, athletic four star forward has a solid relationship with current Buckeye commits but has programs such as Arizona, Florida and LSU hot on his trail. Last season as a junior for St. Augustine in New Orleans, Victor averaged 14 points and 11 rebounds a game, earning The Times-Picayune Large Schools Player of the Year award.

Here is why so many teams are after Craig Victor:

Now onto class of 2015 monster Elijah Thomas. The Rockwall, Texas native plays for Prime Prep Academy, which was started by NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. Elijah, a five-star prospect, is currently the sixth best player, the second best power forward and the top player in Texas for his class according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings. When I caught up with Frank Burlison after the Pangos All-American Camp, he told me that he wouldn't be surprised to hear people compare him to Memphis Grizzlies power forward Zach Randolph, if they aren't already. The Buckeyes could have their hands full trying to bring Thomas up north with the likes of Arizona, Baylor, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville and a long list of other top programs knocking at his door.

Get a glimpse of what Elijah Thomas does to his competition in these highlights:

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