Trevor Thompson Declares for 2017 NBA Draft

Ohio State Buckeyes center Trevor Thompson will make himself eligible for the 2017 NBA draft, ESPN.com's Jeff Goodman reported Tuesday.

Thompson averaged 10.6 points and 9.2 rebounds as a junior in the 2016-17 season.

According to Goodman, Thompson will forgo his final season of college eligibility, which seemingly confirms he's fully committed to this year's draft. He declared for the 2016 draft but didn't hire an agent, which allowed him to return to Ohio State last spring.

Thompson may want to weigh all of his options before making his final decision. ESPN.com's Chad Ford didn't list the 7-footer among the top 100 players in the 2017 class. Thompson made a nice jump from his sophomore to junior years, and a strong senior year would almost certainly bolster his NBA draft prospects even further.

Losing Thompson would be a big blow to the Buckeyes after they missed out on the NCAA tournament for the second season in a row and won fewer than 20 games for the first time under head coach Thad Matta.

Marc Loving is the only senior on the roster, so Ohio State still has a lot of talent coming back next year, but Matta will likely have counted on Thompson anchoring the frontcourt in 2017-18.

His potential departure makes the commitment of 6'9" center Kaleb Wesson, the No. 76 player in the 2017 recruiting class, per Scout, even more important for the Buckeyes.