Why Did Ohio State F Brice Sensabaugh Declare For The NBA Draft?

In his freshman season in Columbus, Ohio State Buckeyes forward Brice Sensabaugh averaged 16.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 33 games en route to all-conference honors.

Ohio State Buckeyes forward Brice Sensabaugh showed from day one his ability to be a volume scorer, finishing in double figures in 22 of his first 23 career games.

Last season, Sensabaugh had the eighth-best field goal percentage at 48.2 percent to go along with a 40.5 percent clip from deep, showing an innate ability to get to spots and knock down shots — something pertinent to NBA success.

But, as he is currently going through the pre-draft process and is a projected first-round pick, why did he ultimately decide to become the Buckeyes' second-consecutive one-and-done?

"Just putting in the extra work. The extra hours, whether it be watching film, in the weight room or getting extra shots up on the court, putting in that extra time was super important for me," Sensabaugh told Big Ten Network's Andy Katz. "Hard work pays off, and it did for me, whether it was one-on-one with my position coach getting shots up after practice, extra condition, whatever it was, I think that extra work pays off."

"In the League, the young guys have to defend first."@OhioStateHoops' @bricepsense spoke with @TheAndyKatz at the @NBADraft Combine about proving he can excel on both sides of the ball at the next level: pic.twitter.com/yBhJq6T151

— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) May 19, 2023

Sensabaugh made the Big Ten's All-Freshman and the conference's Third Team because he was Ohio State's first freshman scoring leader since D'Angelo Russell in 2015 — who was also a one-and-done.

However, the million-dollar question with the Orlando, FL. native's abilities is can he defend NBA-caliber players?

The 6-6, 235-pound forward said he wants to show teams during the pre-draft process that "the effort is there" on the defensive end.

"In the league, the young guys have to defend first, so just keep working on that and being that two-way player that's needed," Sensabaugh said.

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