It wasn’t the standing around that was noteworthy for LJ Smith as much as where he was doing the standing.
On June 18, the 2026-27 Ohio State men’s basketball team was going through the paces of the second full week of summer workouts. Fourteen Buckeyes were on the main floor at the Jerome Schottenstein Center, going through various drills and scrimmage-type situations. Smith was among them. After graduating high school early and moving up from the 2027 class to 2026, he had arrived on campus the evening of June 17th.
So, Smith is officially in uniform and part of the team.
“He’s younger, inexperienced, but he’s talented,” coach Jake Diebler said. “It’ll be a process, but it’s great having him here. There’s been a lot of work to get that done, and we’re excited to have him and excited to see his growth here really starting next week.”
The work that had to take place in order for Smith to join the Buckeyes during this summer dated back to initial conversations about the possibility last fall. As Smith’s junior season at Mouth of Wilson (Virginia) Oak Hill Academy came to a close, Diebler said both sides were still prepared for Smith to play his senior season there. But, according to Diebler, after Ohio State’s coaches watched Smith play AAU basketball this spring in Memphis, Smith’s interest in joining the Buckeyes early was piqued.
“He can really score the ball, and he can score it from multiple levels,” Diebler said of the 6-foot-4, 180-pound guard. “His ability to create gravity on the court, where a defense has to honor him even if he’s a couple feet behind the line, is a great thing for everybody else. He’s got good size for a guard, but he sees the game well.”
Before he decided to reclassify, Smith was a five-star prospect in the 2027 class according to the 247Sports.com composite, which ranked him as the No. 25 national prospect and the No. 5 combo guard. Now in the 2026 class, Smith is a four-star prospect ranked No. 48 nationally and No. 7 at his position.
Likewise, Smith dropped from five- to four-star status at ESPN, which had him as the No. 11 player in the 2027 class and now as the No. 27 player in 2026.
“I’m expecting him to be impactful,” Diebler said. “What that impact looks like, ultimately he’s going to decide, but he’s got a high basketball IQ and he’s talented and he’s got a skillset that will translate right away. Beyond that, there’s a baseline level of impact that I’m expecting and then leaving room for this ceiling that he’s ultimately going to push up.”
On June 18, Smith was limited in practice because he still had to undergo standard medical testing and evaluations before being cleared for full, five-on-five work. In drills, Smith showed fluidity around the basket, explosiveness at the rim and a clear ability to shoot. Diebler said Smith has more play-making abilities than he has shown to this point and that they expect him to show growth in that area once he gets acclimated to the college level.
Having him on the roster alongside fellow guards John Mobley Jr. (6-2, 190), Justin Pippen (6-4, 190), Jimmie Williams (6-4, 210) and Curtis Givens III (6-3, 190) will allow Diebler to play more true three-guard lineups without sacrificing size.
Smith is not eligible for the NBA draft for two years, and analysts consider him talented enough for that to be a part of the conversation about his future. More immediately, Diebler said Smith will factor into his plans this season.
“I’m expecting him to impact winning and from there, what that looks like, how much that is, time will tell,” he said. “There’s no question: He wouldn’t be here if we didn’t feel like he was going to have an impact on this team.”
Ohio State men’s basketball beat writer Adam Jardy can be reached at ajardy@dispatch.com, on Bluesky at @cdadamjardy.bsky.social or on Twitter at @AdamJardy.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Now on campus, freshman LJ Smith getting Ohio State career started
Reporting by Adam Jardy, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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By Adam Jardy, Columbus Dispatch | USA TODAY Network
