The Ohio State Buckeyes have seen their fair share of players leave college early for the NBA Draft during the past few years, but if there was anything consistent on the roster, it had to have been Jon Diebler. Nicknamed 3-bler for his sweet long-range shooting stroke, Diebler used all four years of his college eligibility to set the Buckeye record for career three-pointers made.
Now, Diebler is making his case for an NBA career. But first, he had to get married.
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Dime: I heard that you got married last week. Is that true?
Jon Diebler: That’s true. Got married on Thursday.
Dime: How’d that go? Was it big? Small?
JD: I think we invited 200 people so it wasn’t too big. Had really, really close friends and immediate family and then my teammates and coaches.
Dime: As far as the honeymoon and all that, have you put that off for workouts? What are you doing?
JD: We’re going to honeymoon in July because from what it looks like, there’s going to be a lockout (laughs).
Dime: Who have you worked out for?
JD: I went to New Jersey in May for the group workout. I went to Oklahoma City. I went to the pre-draft combine in Chicago. Went to the Pacers, went to Portland, went to Phoenix, went to Memphis, went to Jersey again and then Chicago, I believe. I think that’s all of them.
Dime: Have you heard anything about where you think you’re going to go or teams that are heavily interested?
JD: I think you just never know what teams are thinking. There’s definitely some teams who really like me, who have some picks in the late second-round. If I were to be drafted I’d be around there … (to) some teams who could best use some three-point shooting. The feedback’s been great. I think I’ve surprised some people with my athleticism and my ability to do things other than just shoot.
Dime: For a guy who’s not a first-round lock, what do you have to do personally in interviews and all that type of thing to stick out amongst whatever number of players are trying to get picked?
JD: I think it’s just showing your character, showing you’re a great person, a guy that can work well with other people. You’re not going to be a hassle to the team, a problem in the locker room. A great teammate. When you talk to teams and they just kind of sit you down, they get to know you a little better. It gives them a better feel for what they’re looking at or the type of person they’re looking at. It’s been fun just trying to show teams that I have a very high basketball IQ. Obviously, shooting is my specialty, but I’m capable of doing other things as well.
Dime: How does the interview process go? Do you talk to GMs, coaches, and what kinds of questions do they ask you? Any weird questions?
JD: I mean, sometimes it’ll be a GM, sometimes a coach, sometimes both. I’ve had a mix of everything. They ask a lot of information on your family background. You know, kind of questions like, “How do you feel you’ll fit in with this team?” “What do you think you can bring to the team?” They give you different scenarios, “How would you handle this?” I haven’t had anything too off the wall, but it’s just a lot of personal questions.
Dime: You’re from Upper Sandusky, Ohio?
JD: Yes.
Dime: It’s not quite the big city, is it?
JD: No, it’s a very small town. Not too many people. They love Ohio State. I was fortunate enough to have a very good high school career (Diebler is the all-time career scorer in Ohio’s high school history) there and play four years at Ohio State. Had a lot of support back home. There’s a lot of agriculture in my town, it’s not a big city. Like you said, it’s not really a city at all. It’s a nice place to live. I loved the years I lived there.
Dime: Your dad was your head coach (in high school). Playing for him, what’d he teach you about the game of basketball?
JD: He taught me a ton. It was him and my two little brothers. I’ve always been around the game. Even my mom played basketball in high school, and she knows quite a bit about the game as well. Just growing up in a basketball family, constantly being in the gym, I mean, I learned at a young age how to play the game correctly and the fundamentals of basketball when I was younger. It’s just something I’m blessed with to have in my life.
Dime: Is it kind of crazy to come from a quiet town and then play with guys at Ohio State who went to the NBA, and now you’re in their position? Can you just talk about that whole journey.
JD: It’s kind of surreal. I was talking to (former Ohio State teammate David) Lighty, we were at a workout together, sitting at a hotel. I told him like, “Man, you remember watching the combine on TV, watching it last year. Watching (former Buckeye) Evan (Turner) going through the process and you hear about some of our teammates going through the process?” It’s just always been a dream to get the opportunity to play at the next level. And to go through this process now has just been great. I’ve really tried to enjoy every day of it, you know, not getting stressed, just taking it one day at a time and enjoying it.
Dime: Do you have any plans for Thursday night? Are you going to watch or not pay attention and just see what happens?
JD: I’ll watch it. Not just for myself, but I’d like to see a couple people that I’ve gotten to know in this process, some of my teammates where they end up. I’m going to watch it with my family. We have a place up near Lake Erie, we’re going to head up there. It’s nice and peaceful and relaxing, so my wife and I will head up there and then my family and possibly her family. So nothing big, not a party or anything. We’re just going to hang out and enjoy the day.
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