Ohio State Buckeyes Standout Reveals Huge NBA Draft News

The Buckeyes get one of their top guards back for the 2025-26 season.

Ohio State Buckeyes forward Sean Stewart (13), guard Bruce Thornton (2) and forward Aaron Bradshaw (4) celebrate following the second overtime of the NCAA men's basketball game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Value City Arena in Columbus on March 4, 2025. Ohio State won 116-114. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Ohio State Buckeyes finished the basketball season with a 17-15 last year with a 9-11 Big Ten record, behind 2nd year head coach Jake Diebler, last year. They were bounced in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament and failed to make the NCAA Tournament for their third year in a row. The team largely underperformed for their expectations, but they just got big news ahead of next season.

A key piece of the Buckeyes, which helped to keep them above .500, was guard Bruce Thornton. He started all 32 games and easily led the team in scoring with 17.7 points per game (ppg), while the next closest teammate, forward Devin Royal, averaged 13.7 ppg. The Buckeyes had 4 players finish the season with a double-digit scoring average so whenThornton became an early entry candidate into the 2025 NBA Draft last month, the offensive future became a bit cloudy.

The 3-year starter and captain wanted to explore his options at the next level and experience the evaluation process, but made it clear from the start he was open to returning to the Scarlet and Gray if he felt like it was the best move.

On Tuesday, his return became a reality for the Buckeyes when it was announced that he had removed his name from the NBA draft and will return for the 2025-26 season.

Bruce Thornton has removed his name from the NBA Draft and will return for another season at The Ohio State University. pic.twitter.com/e0Q06yUE7z

— The Ohio State Hoops Insider (@OSUHoopsInsider) May 27, 2025

Thornton, alongside guard John Mobley, who averaged 13 ppg and will be returning for his sophomore season, will bear a heavy weight of expectations on their shoulders. However, the familiar faces should provide the team with crucial experience to flip the script and hopefully make a deeper run into the Big Ten Tournament while creating a potential March Madness berth.

Thanks to his willingness to put his name in the draft, Thornton will return next year with helpful feedback from the combine to help him improve. Buckeyes fans should be very excited about this news as we look towards next season.