Ohio State basketball earned a huge pickup today when 2026 five-star forward Anthony Thompson chose the Buckeyes. The 6’8 forward with a 7’3 wingspan hails from Lebanon, OH (a suburb north of Cincinnati) and attends Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, OH.
NEWS: 2026 5⭐️ Anthony Thompson has committed to Ohio State, sources told @LeagueRDY.
The 6-foot-8 forward from Hudson, Ohio chose the Buckeyes over Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, North Carolina and Texas.
#13 overall in the @SCNext 100. pic.twitter.com/SKqdqsJ6x1
— Sam Kayser (@KayserHoops) October 21, 2025
Thompson’s recruitment has been interesting. For a while, he was considered a heavy lean to go to Indiana, and took official visits to six schools: North Carolina, Ohio State, Michigan, Indiana, Texas, and Kentucky, in that order. Thompson also had offers from many high-major programs he did not end up visiting, including Cincinnati, Kansas, and Purdue. Obviously, Ohio State landing Thompson’s services over all those other programs is a testament to how hard Jake Diebler and his staff worked on this recruitment.
Thompson has also been active on the AAU circuit, playing for Indiana Elite.
Thompson joins Marcus Johnson and Alex Smith as other recruits committed for Ohio State’s 2026 class. He is Ohio State’s first five-star recruit since D’Angelo Russell in 2014.
