Ohio State welcomes D'Angelo Russell putting eligibility concerns behind them

Ohio State got the news they were waiting for when on Tuesday, the basketball program welcomed D'Angelo Russell, along with the rest of his 2014 classmates, ostensibly clearing the way for his eligibility this coming fall.

The Buckeyes' class of 2014 is highly regarded, ranking eighth in the country according to the 247Sports recruiting rankings, and a big reason why is '14 SG D'Angelo Russell. After committing to the Buckeyes, questions arose recently about his eligibility and being able to join his classmates. When the other members of the '14 class (Keita Bates-Diop, Jae'Sean Tate, and Dave Bell) all enrolled last Monday, Russell was not among them.

The reason was that Russell's high school transcript had not been cleared by the NCAA, but now that appears to be all sorted out. The 6'4 lefty has the type of pure shooting stroke that can help Ohio State find a new identity on offense from last season (see: none). Russell comes into the program as perhaps the most important member of the recruiting class, and will look to lead the Buckeyes back to the top.

From SB Nation's Ricky O'Donnell on Russell:

Russell is a combo guard with range that extends past the three-point line and the type of aggressive mindset Ohio State's offense lacked last season. He comes to Columbus after picking the Buckeyes over North Carolina, Louisville, Florida and plenty of college basketball's other blue-blood programs. After attending Montverde Academy, the same high school that produced Florida's Kasey Hill and Kentucky's Dakari Johnson, Russell is familiar with what it's like to go against high-level competition every day in practice.