Before starting point guard Jaaron Simmons could step into his role as the Ohio Bobcats’ unquestioned floor general, he had to sit out the entire 2014-2015 basketball season due to NCAA transfer guidelines.
Observing from afar for an entire year helped the University of Houston transfer product learn the tendencies of his new Ohio teammates before actually playing alongside them in real games. The process proved to work well last season for Simmons, whose 7.9 assists per game ranked third most among all qualified NCAA Division I players. His 275 total assists broke Ohio’s program record for single-season assists formerly held by heralded Ohio point-guard D.