Jared Sullinger Will Play With Ohio State Alumni Team Carmen's Crew

The former star big man for the Ohio State Buckeyes will now play for Carmen's Crew instead of coach the team in this year's TBT games.

Mar 31, 2012; New Orleans, LA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes forward Jared Sullinger (0) reacts during the first half in the semifinals of the 2012 NCAA men's basketball Final Four against the Kansas Jayhawks at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports / Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

The Basketball Tournament, also known as TBT, will be back once again with the first games set to tip-off on Friday, July 19th. TBT is well-known for the Elam Ending finishes, where a target score gets set and the first team to hit that target wins the game. The tournament is a winner-take-all format with the prize to be split amongst the winning team set at $1 million.

The Ohio State alumni team called Carmen's Crew is mostly composed of former Buckeyes, with a few others often rounding out the roster. This group happens to be quite familiar with winning the tournament after doing so back in 2019.

Former Ohio State and NBA big man Jared Sullinger has served as the head coach for the team for several tournaments now. In some big news on Tuesday morning, TBT announced on X that Sullinger will actually be playing on the Carmen's Crew team this year.

BREAKING NEWS: After coaching for the past few TBTs (including the 2019 Championship), Jared Sullinger WILL MAKE HIS TBT PLAYING RETURN with Carmen’s Crew‼️@Jared_Sully0 is an @OhioStateHoops LEGEND!

TBT Tickets: https://t.co/qFJbGhryeF

Carmen’s Crew’s FINAL TBT Roster⤵️ pic.twitter.com/tLpxIpKmsw

— TBT (@thetournament) July 16, 2024

Here is the final TBT roster for Carmen's Crew:

• Jared Sullinger
• Kaleb Wesson
• Andre Wesson Jr.
• Kyle Young
• Scott Thomas
• Keyshawn Woods
• Claudio Penha Jr.
• Desonta Bradford
• Jamel Morris
• Erick Neal
• Jeff Gibbs
• Tevin Glass

Based on the names listed above, Carmen's Crew has a good shot to be dominant on the glass with a strong presence at the forward spots.

Sullinger certainly leads the group with 269 games played over the course of a six-year NBA career with the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors. Sullinger started in 172 of those games, averaging 10.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game from 2012-2017. Prior to his time in the NBA, Sullinger was a two-time consensus first team All-American with the Buckeyes.

Mar 17, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes forward Jared Sullinger (0) and Buckeyes head coach Thad Matta (right) smile late in the game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the second half in the third round of the 2012 NCAA men's basketball tournament at the CONSOL Energy Center. Ohio state won 73-66. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

More recent Ohio State hoops players like the Wesson brothers and Kyle Young will offer size and toughness. Despite being a strong roster and holding the No. 3 seed in the Dayton region, it is interesting to see over half of this year's roster being honorary Buckeyes instead of actual OSU alums.

Carmen's Crew will first take on the No. 6 seed Purple Hearts on Saturday at 7 PM ET.