Ohio State center Trevor Thompson to put off professional ambitions, return to Buckeyes

Nearly two months after making himself eligible for the NBA Draft, Ohio State center Trevor Thompson will return the Buckeyes, per ESPN's Jeff Goodman. Thompson's decision to come back to school was an expected one, as it was unlikely that he would have been drafted, especially after missing the NBA Combine.

The 6'11, 250-pound rising redshirt junior appeared in all 35 games for the Buckeyes in 2015-16, making 28 starts. Thompson averaged 6.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game while shooting 52 percent from the field. Thompson arrived at Ohio State two seasons ago after he transferred from Virginia Tech following his freshman year.

It's fair to say Thompson's declaration for the draft was centered around a recent NCAA rule change that permits underclassmen to enter their names into the NBA Draft without forfeiting their eligibility. As long an early entrant did not sign with an agent and withdrew from draft consideration by May 25, the player's eligibility would remain intact. (Early entrants that were invited to the 2016 NBA Draft Combine had 10 days after the combine to withdraw, but Thompson was not granted an invitation.) As Cleveland.com pointed out, Thompson could have also worked out with each NBA once and maintained his college eligibility.

With freshman center Daniel Giddens transferring after the season, Thompson should receive the bulk of the minutes at center next season, with his only competition for playing time being rising redshirt sophomore David Bell (who played just 47 minutes during conference play) and incoming freshman Micah Potter.