5 Best Ohio State Buckeyes Basketball Players, Ranked

If you bet on the Buckeyes NCAA basketball odds to make the NCAA Tournament from 2022 to 2024, you would’ve come up short as they went 38-33 over those two seasons and finished with a 14-26 record in the Big Ten. 

However, the Buckeyes have had some success, especially in the 1960s, when they kicked off the decade with a national championship win. 

You can wager on their basketball betting odds at the BetMGM online sportsbook.

With so much history, see my list of the five best Buckeyes ever. 

5 Best Ohio State Buckeyes Basketball Players, Ranked

Ohio State Buckeyes All-Time Greatest Basketball Players

1. Jerry Lucas

Lucas played three seasons for Ohio State from 1959 to 1962. 

Lucas was there in 1958, but he was on the freshman team. 

As a sophomore, he was part of the Buckeyes 1960 national championship squad. 

Over those three seasons, he averaged 24.3 points and 17.2 rebounds. 

Lucas was a two-time Final Four Most Outstanding Player, two-time consensus National Player of the Year, three-time consensus first-team All-American, two-time NCAA rebounding leader, and three-time first-team All-Big Ten. The school retired his No. 11. 

Lucas finished his career with 1,990 points (tied for third in program history) and 1,411 rebounds (first). He also holds the top three spots in single-season rebounding records. 

2. Dennis Hopson

Hopson played for the Buckeyes from 1983 to 1987, playing in 125 games and starting 96 of them. He averaged 16.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. 

For context, He started just 30 of 59 games over his first two seasons. As a senior, he averaged 29 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.2 steals per game. 

Hopson scored 2,096 points over his career (first) and also holds the single-season record with 958 during the 1986-87 season. 

Hopson was a consensus second-team All-American, Big Ten Player of the Year, and first-team All-Big Ten. 

3. Evan Turner

Turner played three seasons at Ohio State, averaging 20.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, six assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game as a junior. That was his final season of college basketball. 

He was the National College Player of the Year, consensus first-team All-American, Big Ten Male Athlete of the Year, Big Ten Player of the Year, two-time first-team All-Big Ten, and Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player. The school retired his No. 21.

He recorded 414 assists (ninth) and 159 steals (sixth). 

4. Herb Williams

A big man, Williams blocked 328 shots (second) across his four-year career for Ohio State from 1977 to 1981. 

He was third-team All-American and first-team All-Big Ten. 

In addition to his blocking success, he had 2,011 points (second) and 1,111 rebounds (second). 

Over his career, he averaged 17.6 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks per game. 

As a freshman, he averaged 11.4 rebounds per game, the most he had in his four seasons.

5. John Havlicek

Havlicek was a sophomore when the Buckeyes won their first and only national title in 1960. That season, he averaged 12.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. 

Havlicek was a phenomenal defender, but offensively, he finished his career averaging 17 points and 9.7 rebounds as a senior. 

In addition to being a national champion, he was a consensus second-team All-American, third-team All-American, and two-time first-team All-Big Ten.

Ohio State retired his No. 5.