Analysis: Ohio State’s Cedric Russell Declares for NBA Draft

Ohio State’s Cedric Russell will not return after his one lone season with the team. The fifth-year senior played four years with the Louisiana Rajun Cajuns, before transferring to the Buckeyes for the 2021-22 season.

Russell only played 13 minutes per game and was unable to crack the starting rotation, but remained an effective role player for OSU. While he only averaged 4.2 points per game in limited minutes, he was a flamethrower from deep, hitting at a clip of 43%. He also registered a solid 108.8 offensive rating on the season, per KenPom.

Prior to his time at Ohio State, Russell blossomed into a star combo guard for Louisiana. In his final season (2020-21), Russell averaged 17.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists for the Ragin’ Cajuns and was named first-team All-Sun Belt.

Being a fifth-year senior who never started for Ohio State, Russell is extremely unlikely to be drafted in the 2022 NBA Draft. I was unable to find a single mock draft that had him being drafted. Still, there are options for Russell in international leagues, should he choose to pursue this path.