As many await junior Evan Turner’s decision on his plans for next season, one of his teammates has already declared his intentions.
Sophomore guard William Buford, who some thought would leave OSU for the NBA, said Friday that he will remain in school for his junior year.
“Of course,” Buford said when asked if he would be back next season. “I haven’t thought about it at all. I’m staying here.”
Other than Turner, Buford was arguably the most effective player for the Buckeyes this season. Although he struggled mightily with his shot in the first few weeks of the season, he evolved into a viable second option for OSU on the offensive end.
If Turner is to leave for the NBA as most expect, Buford will likely take on a bigger role as a junior, and will be the Buckeyes’ go-to scorer. He was second on the team in scoring this year with 14.4 points per game.
Perhaps more important than his scoring, however, was the improvement he made on the defensive end.
Earlier in the year OSU coach Thad Matta admitted that even though Buford was named the Big Ten’s freshman of the year a season ago, there were times that he appeared uninterested on the floor.
“He thought ‘de fence’ was what keeps the dog in contain,” Matta joked of Buford’s defensive intensity as a freshman.
But although he wasn’t perfect this year, Buford was far from a liability and even became the team’s second leading rebounder with 5.6 per game.
If Buford has a change of heart in the coming weeks, which seems unlikely based on his comments Friday, the deadline for NCAA underclassmen to enter the NBA draft is April 25.
