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By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sportswriter
POSTED: 06:25 p.m. EDT, Apr 12, 2008
Ohio State basketball player Kosta Koufos is mulling his future in college basketball.
Koufos (GlenOak High School) was expected to make a decision this past week, but that proved premature.
His mother, Kathy Koufos, a high school guidance counselor, said that his options are too complicated to rush into things.
''It's a very serious decision, and we're weighing all of his options,'' she said by telephone. ''We're not excluding anything right now.''
Koufos could stay in school, enter the NBA Draft, or turn pro and play in Greece.
His college coach, Thad Matta, thinks he should stay.
Not that his performance as a freshman was unimpressive.
Koufos averaged 14.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks and capped off the season by winning the outstanding player award in the National Invitation Tournament, which the Buckeyes won.
''I think he could really help us and help himself by coming back,'' Matta said in a recent report.
But what of his other options? Looking ahead to the NBA Draft, there is no dearth of big men available for teams looking for a 7-footer. Four underclassman centers already have declared for the draft. That situation could prove problematic in that it could devalue his draft status, experts have said.
''I think he's a first-rounder if he decides to enter. I think he'll go somewhere between 15 and 30 in the first round. I think he'd be better suited waiting another year,'' said Jonathan Givony, president and director of scouting for the Web site DraftExpress.com. ''So many guys have entered the draft, he didn't have the kind of year he needed to have to be a lottery pick. Which, potential-wise, he can get there down the road.''
ESPN basketball analyst Jay Bilas said Koufos should wait.
''He's got to get stronger, improve his lower base and not get moved around as easily,'' Bilas said. ''I think he's got to become a better rebounder and defender.
''If you're coming out early, you'd better be ready to make an impact on that league, and he's not prepared to do that yet.''
That leaves Koufos with another option that he is considering, his mother said: Greece. Koufos holds dual citizenship and has played for the Greek national team.
Before entering OSU last summer, he played in the Under-18 European championships in Madrid. He dominated the tournament, averaging 26.5 points, 13 rebounds and 3.5 blocks and won the tournament's Most Valuable Player award after leading the Greek national team to a silver medal.
According to reports, he spurned a multimillion-dollar offer to play pro ball in Greece so he could attend OSU.
''Since he has that heritage, he may want to do that,'' Bilas said. ''The only difference over there is that he can spend more time playing and work on his game as opposed to going to school, but I wouldn't recommend that.''
Givony sees a couple of other advantages for going to Greece.
''He would make money. It would allow him to improve on his game before he gets drafted,'' he said. ''And I think that his game is better suited for European basketball than for college. It's kind of hard for big guys to stand out sometimes in college.''
The arrival of another 7-footer, B.J. Mullens, at Ohio State could cause some problems, too.
''They can't really play together, especially under Thad's system; he values defense so heavily,'' Givony said. ''It's going to be a little bit difficult for (Koufos) playing with B.J. Mullens. B.J.'s a highly touted guy, and you'd think he would be one and done himself.''
George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/sportsblitz/.
Ohio State basketball player Kosta Koufos is mulling his future in college basketball.
Koufos (GlenOak High School) was expected to make a decision this past week, but that proved premature.
His mother, Kathy Koufos, a high school guidance counselor, said that his options are too complicated to rush into things.
''It's a very serious decision, and we're weighing all of his options,'' she said by telephone. ''We're not excluding anything right now.''
Koufos could stay in school, enter the NBA Draft, or turn pro and play in Greece.
His college coach, Thad Matta, thinks he should stay.
Not that his performance as a freshman was unimpressive.
Koufos averaged 14.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks and capped off the season by winning the outstanding player award in the National Invitation Tournament, which the Buckeyes won.
''I think he could really help us and help himself by coming back,'' Matta said in a recent report.
But what of his other options? Looking ahead to the NBA Draft, there is no dearth of big men available for teams looking for a 7-footer. Four underclassman centers already have declared for the draft. That situation could prove problematic in that it could devalue his draft status, experts have said.
''I think he's a first-rounder if he decides to enter. I think he'll go somewhere between 15 and 30 in the first round. I think he'd be better suited waiting another year,'' said Jonathan Givony, president and director of scouting for the Web site DraftExpress.com. ''So many guys have entered the draft, he didn't have the kind of year he needed to have to be a lottery pick. Which, potential-wise, he can get there down the road.''
ESPN basketball analyst Jay Bilas said Koufos should wait.
''He's got to get stronger, improve his lower base and not get moved around as easily,'' Bilas said. ''I think he's got to become a better rebounder and defender.
''If you're coming out early, you'd better be ready to make an impact on that league, and he's not prepared to do that yet.''
That leaves Koufos with another option that he is considering, his mother said: Greece. Koufos holds dual citizenship and has played for the Greek national team.
Before entering OSU last summer, he played in the Under-18 European championships in Madrid. He dominated the tournament, averaging 26.5 points, 13 rebounds and 3.5 blocks and won the tournament's Most Valuable Player award after leading the Greek national team to a silver medal.
According to reports, he spurned a multimillion-dollar offer to play pro ball in Greece so he could attend OSU.
''Since he has that heritage, he may want to do that,'' Bilas said. ''The only difference over there is that he can spend more time playing and work on his game as opposed to going to school, but I wouldn't recommend that.''
Givony sees a couple of other advantages for going to Greece.
''He would make money. It would allow him to improve on his game before he gets drafted,'' he said. ''And I think that his game is better suited for European basketball than for college. It's kind of hard for big guys to stand out sometimes in college.''
The arrival of another 7-footer, B.J. Mullens, at Ohio State could cause some problems, too.
''They can't really play together, especially under Thad's system; he values defense so heavily,'' Givony said. ''It's going to be a little bit difficult for (Koufos) playing with B.J. Mullens. B.J.'s a highly touted guy, and you'd think he would be one and done himself.''
George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/sportsblitz/.
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