Parks appeared in 15 games as a sophomore, scoring 20 points and pulling down 13 rebounds.
After two years as part of the Ohio State men’s basketball program, Austin Parks — a 6-foot-10, 260-pound center from Saint Mary’s — has opted to enter the transfer portal and continue his college basketball career elsewhere.
— Austin Parks (@AustinParks2023) March 18, 2025
Parks appeared in 15 games last season, totaling 124 minutes. He scored 20 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, committed 19 personal fouls, recorded five assists and one block.
His best game of his Ohio State career was on December 7, 2024 in an 80-66 win over Rutgers. Parks scored six points on 3-of-4 shooting and grabbed four rebounds in 16 minutes. He also had his only block of the season in that game. After the game, head coach Jake Diebler said that Parks played “his best game in an Ohio State uniform.”
Parks competed with Ivan Njegovan throughout the season for the role of emergency third-string center. When the season began it looked like Njegovan had the leg-up on that role, but that flipped several games in, and Parks played in five of Ohio State’s six games in December. Once the calendar flipped to 2025, he only appeared in five of Ohio State’s 18 games.
Jake Diebler opted to start the combination of Aaron Bradshaw and Sean Stewart at center this past season, occasionally playing Parks but usually preferring to go with a small ball lineup if neither Stewart or Bradshaw were available. Last month, Diebler said that Parks needed to continue to work on his consistency to earn more minutes, especially on the defensive end.
Parks was the No. 184 recruit in the class of 2023, the No. 26 center, and the No. 5 player in the state of Ohio. He was the lowest-rated freshman in Ohio State’s four-man class, behind Taison Chatman, Devin Royal, and Scotty Middleton. Despite being well outside the top-100, Parks was heavily recruited by the Big Ten as well as essentially every college basketball program in Ohio.
Parks’ decision to transfer is likely due to playing time, or lack thereof. Even during a year where Ohio State was starving for production and rebounds from the center position, Parks only averaged eight minutes per game and attempted — on average — one shot attempt per game.
During high school Parks was also recruited heavily by Michigan State, Indiana, Illinois, Dayton, Toledo, and Cincinnati. It wouldn’t be a surprise if DePaul also got involved, as Chris Holtmann coached Parks for one year at Ohio State. Parks is originally from northwest Ohio.
With Parks’ departure, Ohio State now has one open roster spot for the 2025-2026 season. Starting next season, the NCAA is doing away with scholarship limits and enforcing a 15-player roster limit, regardless of scholarship limit.
Good luck to Austin, wherever he winds up!