I’m in the heart of Buckeyeland, so every now and then I like to make a post about our local teams.  Ohio State’s basketball team just made it to their third straight sweet sixteen and will be playing neighborhood “rivals,” Cincinnati tonight.  A big part of their success has been Ohio State’s All-American center, Jared Sullinger.

In the last month though, locally, there has been questions about Sullinger’s play.  Some of the fans are wondering why he hasn’t been scoring 20 and 10 on a nightly basis?  Why is he getting outplayed by seemingly inferior opponents?  Is he really as good as advertised?  What’s up with him complaining about fouls or non-fouls?

I think I have an answer and it does relate to a lot of the sport training that I talk about on this site.  Just hang in there and I’ll explain.

Several years back, my facility was located at a different basketball venue then it is now.  When Sullinger was a junior, his high school team was ranked like first in the nation.  They practiced at this venue I was at, as they trekked towards a state championship.

I watched him practice quite a few times and after the season play in pickup games with his older brother against collegiate/pro competition.  Nice kid.  I thought he had some good moves, but I wasn’t entirely sold on all the hoopla he was getting.

His freshman year at Ohio State, he really made an impact and I was impressed.  I know my opinion doesn’t mean anything, but he showed me some skills and probably could have been a top 5 pick in the draft last year if he had chosen to leave early.

This year, he lost some weight, worked on his game, and I thought would have a stellar sophomore season.  But, it has had its ups and downs.

He missed a few weeks prior to the Big 10 season with back spasms and had to work his way back into shape.  This last month has really been tough on him.  Teams have been a lot more physical with him and really taken him out of his game.

So now Ohio State fans don’t know what to expect.  I don’t know what to expect either, but I think I have a reason to why he has struggled this last month or so.  Remember, this is strictly my assessment.  I have received no insider information.

I think his injuries are bothering him a lot more than we realize.  It’s as simple as that.

I’ve heard some people say, “Sullinger was better when he had more weight.”  That’s bunk.  He shed some pounds which was mostly fat, not muscle.  It’s made his body more in shape for the grind of basketball.

His game didn’t take a hit.  You can tell he worked on his game.  The guy hits 33% (roughly) from three point land.  He hardly took any the previous season.

Last year, bigger guys sometimes would give him issues, but most of the time he had an array of moves that would really negate their size.  You just don’t lose the ability to do that.  I think he is still gimpy and just not playing it up.

The report was his back spasms were caused by some plantar fasciitis.  I have plantar fasciitis.  Now, I don’t have the daily medical treatment available to me the way he does, but I will say it is not fun to play basketball on and it might take a while to go away.

The back spasms might have ceased, but if he still has that plantar fasciitis that would explain why his lift isn’t great, why more physical guys are causing him fits sometimes, and why he can’t make quicker moves.  I think that is why his frustration level is so high.  He’s giving it his all, but right now his body just can’t perform at his usual high level.

So, if he does have plantar fasciitis, then I’m sure the staff is doing what they can to help alleviate the pain.  May I suggest some of the remedies in my post about plantar fasciitis.

And I’m not the only one that thinks he’s injured.  The Columbus Dispatch reported that some NBA scouts are questioning the same thing.  I’d be curious to hear your comments.  You agree with me, like my theory, or just believe that he is a big baby and will believe what you want to believe.

Either way, let’s hope the Buckeyes pull it together and can get back to the Final Four and compete for a national title.  And for that, we need Sullinger to play like we know he can play.  Let’s get em big guy.