Texas Tech basketball: Should Tubby Smith recruit Ohio St. transfer Mickey Mitchell?

Ohio State basketball forward Mickey Marshall has announced his plans to transfer to a new school. Should Texas Tech basketball recruit the player whose brother Mike transferred to Texas Tech from Ohio State two years ago but has already left the program?

This week Ohio State basketball forward Mickey Mitchell from Plano, TX was granted his release from the team. Though things did not work out between his older brother Mike and the Texas Tech football program, Tubby Smith and the Texas Tech basketball program should take a long look at trying to bring the former 4-star recruit to Lubbock.

Most fans know the history between Mitchell’s brother Mike and Kliff Kingsbury’s program. The former 5-star defensive recruit transferred to Texas Tech in 2013 after also leaving Ohio State following just one season.

Unfortunately, Mike Mitchell did not turn out to be the difference maker he was expected to be. Even though the 2015 Texas Tech defense was one of the worst in school history and desperately needed playmakers, Mike Mitchell saw the field only sparingly and played mostly on special teams.

After the season, it was announced by the football program that Mike Mitchell was going to find yet another school at which he would continue his football career. The news, and more importantly Mike Mitchell’s lack of impact at Texas Tech, came as a huge disappointment to Red Raider fans.

Now the situation seems to be repeating itself. So should the Texas Tech basketball team pursue Mickey Mitchell?

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When Mickey Mitchell was a high school recruit from the Dallas area, Texas Tech and Tubby Smith did recruit him hoping that his big brother’s presence would help lure him to the south plains. However, Mickey Mitchell eventually chose to go the route big brother did and headed to Ohio State.

But after one season on the court, Mickey Mitchell is also leaving Columbus. It appears that Mickey was always conflicted about his choice to be a Buckeye.

"According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer “Mitchell’s time with Ohio State started on somewhat shaky ground to begin with. Before being ruled ineligible by the NCAA, Mitchell had a wild recruitment during which he committed to Ohio State, decommitted and then re-committed shortly after.Mitchell and his family told cleveland.com in June that Mitchell decommitted from Ohio State for family reasons.”"

The notion of family reasons was the biggest motivation for the older Mitchell brother to enroll at Texas Tech. Mike Mitchell wanted to be closer to his father who was battling health issues.

Mickey Mitchell has made no comments about what his motivations for leaving Ohio State are but it is not a stretch to connect the dots. Interestingly, he is the third player to leave the Buckeye basketball team since the end of its season so something could be amiss with Thad Matta’s program.

This season, Mickey Mitchell “averaged 2.0 points and 2.8 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game”. Link He did miss 11 games due to injury but finished the season as a starter.

The 6-foot-7 forward is considered a strong passer and ball handler that looks to make plays for his teammates. So would he be a fit on the Texas Tech basketball team?

Regardless of where Mitchell lands, he will have to sit out a season meaning that his sophomore year would coincide with the senior seasons of Texas Tech’s 2015-16 core group of four sophomore players’ forwards Justin Gray, Zach Smith and Norense Odiase as well as point guard Keenan Evans. Mitchell could be a nice asset for the team in the 2019 season as a junior when Texas Tech may be again relying on a large number of young players to replace the 2017-18 seniors.

Though most Texas Tech fans have a bad taste in their mouth from the Mike Mitchell and Texas Tech football breakup, each situation is different. As those with siblings know, children of the same parents are often total opposites.

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It would be wise for Tubby Smith to look into Mickey Mitchell and decide whether or not he is a fit for the Texas Tech basketball program. Should Smith extend an offer to Mickey Mitchell and should Mitchell accept, Texas Tech fans will have to trust the judgment of the basketball coaching staff. After all, Tubby Smith has earned the benefit of the doubt in Lubbock thus far.

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