Taison Chatman is No. 10 in our Ohio State men's basketball preseason power rankings

adam jardy, columbus dispatch

Sat, Oct 28, 2023, 12:05 PM·5 min read

Men’s basketball season is about to get underway, and it’s time to dive into the Ohio State roster.

After a 16-19 record that caused the Buckeyes to miss the postseason for the first time in coach Chris Holtmann’s six seasons with the program, Ohio State returns several key core players while adding a highly rated freshman class and a three-man transfer group all expected to make significant impacts.

To get ready for the season, The Dispatch is once again rolling out its annual preseason power rankings. Each day leading into the Nov. 6 season opener with Oakland, we will count upward while projecting which players will have the biggest roles on the 2023-24 season. This isn’t just a measurement of who will lead the team in any particular statistical category, but a series of educated guesses on which players’ contributions will go the longest way toward where the Buckeyes finish.

The series continues today with first-year guard Taison Chatman.

No. 10 – Taison Chatman

Position: Guard

Eligibility: First year (three remaining)

Height/weight: 6 feet 4 / 175 pounds

Jersey number: 3

Major: Exploration

Background

As the No. 33 national prospect according to 247Sports.com, Chatman is the highest-rated member of Ohio State’s four-man 2023 recruiting class. A standout at Fridley (Minnesota) Totino-Grace, Chatman was the No. 1 player from his state and listed as the No. 7 combo guard in the nation.

Ohio State began recruiting Chatman during the spring of his junior year, and his official visit to campus coincided with not only visits by the entirety of the 2023 class but an unofficial visit taken by Bronny James, LeBron’s son who is now at USC. At the time, Ohio State had a commitment from guard George Washington III, but after the visit he de-committed and eventually signed with Michigan. That decision freed up a spot that Chatman, within a few weeks, filled.

The Buckeyes viewed him as a guard who could play off the ball but also direct the offense at the point as well, a key factor in his decision to pick Ohio State from a list of finalists that also included Kansas, Minnesota, Virginia and Xavier. The Golden Gophers, his hometown school, backed off a bit in their recruitment after landing Cameron Christie, a four-star shooting guard from Rolling Meadows, Illinois, ranked No. 84 in the class.

With his commitment out of the way, Chatman battled through an injury and helped Totino-Grace capture a second straight state title. He averaged around 17 points, eight assists and eight rebounds despite the injury and finished the year with 20 points and 12 rebounds in the 50-46 win against DeLaSalle in the championship game.

Need to know

Sep 25, 2023; Columbus, OH, USA; Taison Chatman talks about their upcoming season at the Schottensteim Center.

He has shared an AAU backcourt with Tamin Lipsey, a point guard from Iowa who signed with Iowa State as part of its 2022 class. Ohio State associate head coach Jake Diebler was his primary recruiter. While on his official visit to Ohio State, Chatman got to meet with athletic director Gene Smith and program alumnus Evan Turner. His younger brother, Tian, is growing into a Division I prospect in the class of 2026. He was the fourth and final member of the 2023 class to commit to Ohio State. During the summer, Chatman was workout partners with Baylor graduate transfer Dale Bonner.

2023-24 season outlook

With two returning guards ticketed for significant playing time and a graduate transfer from Baylor also in the fold, Chatman arrived at Ohio State looking at a role that would have the potential to grow as he progressed through his freshman season. But as the summer progressed and Chatman was in and out of workouts and practices due to injury, the freshman missed out on valuable reps and opportunities to settle into the team.

Ultimately, as the preseason got underway, Chatman made the decision to undergo what has been described by coach Chris Holtmann as a minor medical procedure to help him firmly move past the injury that has affected him. At Big Ten media day Oct. 10 inside the Target Center in Minneapolis, Holtmann said Chatman would be sidelined for about 3-5 weeks, which would put him back in action sometime in mid-November.

Oct 19, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes guard Taison Chatman (3) and center Austin Parks (25) watch from under the basket during an open practice at Value City Arena.

"It was hard, but the medical staff wanted me to think long-term," Chatman said at Ohio State's open practice Oct. 20 at Value City Arena. "I’ve got a lot of basketball ahead of me, so I think it was the best decision long-term for me."

If not for the injury, Chatman would be ticketed for a primary backup role from the opening tip of the season. Now, his freshman year is in wait-and-see mode. By season’s end, Chatman figures to be a part of Ohio State’s backcourt rotation, but how much time he will see is difficult to predict. The good news for the freshman: by all accounts, his recovery is going well, and he should be back to full health on schedule.

"I feel like he’s had the ability to stay positive, and I’ve kind of preached that to him every day, just don’t look ahead," sophomore guard Roddy Gayle Jr. said. "Just focus on getting recovered first. Don’t try to rush it back, and when the time is right he’ll be able to provide another big guard for us and be able to distribute the ball and score the ball."

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