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Ohio State recruiting: State Secrets, 8/5 - D'Angelo Russell, Stephen Zimmerman, adidas Nations updates

Find out how a number of Ohio State basketball targets performed at the adidas Nations tournament plus which class of 2014 football recruits kept the Bucks on their short lists.

By Charles Doss

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Stephen Zimmerman was one of the many Ohio State targets at Adidas Nations over the weekend.
Stephen Zimmerman was one of the many Ohio State targets at Adidas Nations over the weekend.
Adidas

Current class of 2014 commit D'Angelo Russell and numerous class of 2014 and 2015 Ohio State basketball targets participated in the adidas Nations tournament held in California over the weekend. The tournament wraps up later today. Russell, a 6-4 180 pound left handed prospect, is talented enough to play either guard position and has been one of the top overall prospects this summer, showing he is well worth his five-star ranking. His outstanding play continued in Long Beach the last few days. On Saturday, Russell helped lead his USA Blue team to victories over Europe and Latin America, scoring in double digits both games.

More: Top 2015 DE James Lockhart talks about his interest in Ohio State

Hall of Fame Basketball writer Frank Burlison of BurlisonOnBasketball.com had the chance to check out Russell in action over the weekend and told Land-Grant Holy Land the following on how he performed:

"Russell is continuing his streak of playing very well at every venue I've watched him at during the spring and summer. He's playing with a very nice "scorer/play maker" balance. He's certainly solidified his status as a strong 2014 McDonald's All-American candidate."

Class of 2015 big man target Stephen Zimmerman showcased his all around game going against some of top players in the country. The 6'10"-ish Zimmerman was on the USA Red U15 squad with fellow OSU targets Charles Matthews and Jaylen Brown, to name a couple, knocking down jumpers, hook shots and even posterizing this poor kid, which brought most in the stands to their feet:

Burlison was kind enough to also share his thoughts on the five-star Zimmerman with us:

"I've seen Zimmerman quite a bit since he was an eighth-grader attending the Pangos All-American Camp. He might be as "skilled" offensively at 6-10 or taller as there is in high school basketball, regardless of the class. In my opinion he's the best prospect in the national class of 2015."

From the sound of things, Cleveland native and class of 2015 Vila-Angela St. Joe's forward Carlton Bragg was his normal self this weekend. Per many on hand accounts, Bragg displayed a strong, all around offensive game, while also being a defensive terror throughout the weekend. Carlton and his USA Blue U15 team took on class of 2014 Ohio State target Jahlil Okafor and his USA Red squad Sunday afternoon. In what sounds like a hard fought contest, Okafor and the upperclassmen beat Bragg and USA Blue, 94-84. Jahlil and Carlton both stole the show; each stud forward scored 18 points a piece for their team.

Speaking of Okafor, the near 7-0 five-star post has made it clear over the last few months that he would love to play with fellow class of 2014 prospect, Tyus Jones. According to Jahlil's Mac Irvin Fire AAU coach Mike Irvin, Duke could have the inside track. Irvin was quoted as saying Coach K has been doing a great job recruiting Okafor and believes if the pair indeed plan on being college teammates, the Blue Devils could be the team to beat.

California class of 2014 five-star running back Joe Mixon announced his top ten list with Ohio State, Tennessee, Oregon, Oregon State, Oklahoma, Florida, Texas A&M, California, Wisconsin and Washington all making the cut. Mixon rushed for nearly 1,500 yards and 20 touchdowns last season, and is ranked the 26th player in the nation, the top all-purpose back and fourth best overall talent in California, according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

Mixon's short list isn't the only one the Bucks made over the weekend; Petera Wilson, a four-star class of 2014 linebacker out of Memphis, Tennessee is now down to OSU, Florida State, Ole Miss, LSU, Miami and Georgia. Per the 247Sports Composite Rankings, Wilson a 6-3 220 pound linebacker, comes in as the 198th player in the nation, the ninth best inside linebacker and fifth best recruit in Tennessee.

QUICK HITS:

  • 2015 4-star DE James Lockhart tells our Adam Waters that he and his father are both Ohio State fans, and he'd love an Ohio State offer. Earlier Sunday evening he'd wished publicly on the social media platform Twitter that Ohio State would show more love in his direction.
  • Devan Bogard, who had mid-season surgery last season, participated in the early morning newcomers practice as did upper-classmen offensive linemen Eric Kramer and Ben St. John and defensive lineman John Holman.
  • Four new walk-ons were added to the Ohio State football team in time for fall camp's start: the previously reported on Georgia Tech transfer, WR Jeff Greene (who'll sit out this season and have two years of eligibility remaining beginning next year), freshman LB Aaron Mawhirter, from Sandusky, Ohio, OL Ben Moffitt, a freshman from Shelby Township, Mich (who we profiled earlier this summer), and freshman WR Joe Ramstetter, from Cincinnati.

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