In a story last Thursday describing Bates-Diop’s rise from bookworm adolescent to injured, redshirted junior to breakout Big 12 Player of the Year candidate, The Fieldhouse’s Dana O’Neil spoke at length with Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann, and got several insightful quotes about the forward’s growth as a Buckeye.
When Holtmann first took the job, he sat Bates-Diop down and gave him the truth about his reputation within the program:
"“People say you’re not always assertive, that you’re not as tough as you could be, that your motor doesn’t run all the time, and until you answer them, those will always be the questions about you.”"
The prior season, with Ohio State’s talent depleted and their legendary coach, Thad Matta, on his way out, Bates-Diop had started to show signs of progress, increasing his 3-point volume and handling a heavier offensive load. But a stress fracture during the summer took his junior season away.
This year, with the program reinvigorated and his body finally right, Bates-Diop has come into his own as a scorer, flashing the book-smart intelligence O’Neil uncovered in her story. Quotes like this, from Bates-Diop, are the ones that ring true today:
"I had a whole year to sit on it and think about it. I wanted to make sure I did everything I could have done.’’"
Age and consistency concerns could turn teams away that would rather shoot for the moon, but someone could turn Bates-Diop into a valuable, versatile player.