2026 Ohio Mr Basketball Candidates Part 1

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's always fun to project which players could be in the running to win Mr Basketball at the end of the season. In this article we'll take a look at five names who project to be in the running to win the award at the end of the year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1705948"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-691ce6875a697"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">The reigning Mr Basketball winner, Johnson would be joining only Greg Simpson, LeBron James, Oj Mayo, Jared Sullinger and Luke Kennard as multi-time winners. Johnson also won the award his Dad won back in 1998. Johnson is also no longer committed to Ohio State and will instead play for South Carolina, the school his cousin is currently a sixth year senior at. Garfield Heights has been close to winning a state title and a heartbreaking loss where they held a double-digit lead in the state semis cost them last season, we'll see if Johnson can lead the Bulldogs to the ultimate stage this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1827696"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-691ce6875a70e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">My favorite to unseat Johnson as the winner, Elwer is one tough customer on both ends of the court. You won't find many better shooters or more skilled guards on the ball anywhere in Ohio. It also helps that Delphos St John's was one of the top small school teams in the state last season and project as favorites in Division VII this year. Elwer is also committed at the Division I level to Furman, the last non Division I commit to win Mr Basketball was Justin Fritts back in 2012 for Mentor.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2125748"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-691ce6875a763"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">The top ranked prospect in the OHSAA from the class of 2027 is also the leader of the preseason number 1 ranked team in the state. That combination is going to give Tyson a great opportunity to walk away with the award as Lakota West will be a marquee team that everybody in the state makes sure they watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1827697"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-691ce6875a7b3"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">The Dayton commit is playing on a Margaretta squad that went 21-1 last season and will have a chance at an unbeaten regular season this year. An elite shooter and athlete, Washington will light up the scoreboard and give fans plenty to cheer about throughout the season. Recently, Colin White won Mr Basketball at a similarly sized northwest Ohio public school, could Washington follow in his footsteps and claim Ohio's ultimate individual accolade?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1705956"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-691ce6875a805"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Reynoldsburg had four Division I commits last year and with just two this year, expect McKinney to have to do more heavy lifting offensively on a nightly basis. McKinney had his breakout year last winter for the Raiders but now is a senior and will be looked to lead the team on a nightly basis. Ohio is one of five schools to have multiple Mr Basketball winners (Sonny Johnson and Geno Ford) but both were before the 21st century.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->