Draft:Ron Stokes

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Ron (Ronnie) Stokes (born February 24, 1963) is a former American basketball player and a current radio commentator. Stokes played point guard at The Ohio State University (1981-1985).

Since 1997, Stokes has been the radio color commentator for Ohio State Men's Basketball on the Ohio State Sports Network.

Away from basketball, Stokes is CEO of Three Leaf Productions; EVP of his family business, LARS, LLC; co-owner of Egelhoff Sports; and is a member of the Board of Directors at German American Bancorp, Inc.

Early Life and Education

Born in Canton, Ohio, in 1963, Ron Stokes was one of 13 children in a blended family of Frank and Lillie Stokes.

Stokes attended public schools in Canton, including his last three years at McKinley Senior High School, graduating in 1981. During his three years, the Canton McKinley Bulldogs basketball team went 69-7, including an undefeated regular season his senior year, when the team earned the regular-season AP crown. Their season ended with a loss in the state regional finals to Wadsworth High School.

During his high school basketball career, Stokes earned first-team All-District and second-team All-State honors.

Notable teammates on those Canton McKinley basketball teams included Ron's future Ohio State teammate Troy Taylor, as well as David Greer. Greer went on to play four years at Bowling Green State University before starting a career as a college basketball coach, eventually becoming the winningest head coach at Wayne State University.

Those Canton McKinley teams were coached by Ken Newlon, a 2010 Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame Inductee.

College Playing Career

Ohio State

Ron Stokes was recruited to play basketball at numerous colleges across Ohio and the Midwest. He – along with his high school teammate and friend Troy Taylor – chose to attend The Ohio State University.

Stokes played point guard for the Ohio State Buckeyes from 1981 through 1985.

As a freshman, Stokes gained meaningful playing time, ending the season with an average of 6.5 points and 2.9 assists per game. During his sophomore year, Stokes increased his contributions, averaging 9 points and 3.4 assists.

Stokes was named captain before the start of his junior year, when he averaged 12 points and 2.8 assists. The statistical improvement continued into his senior year, when Stokes was once again voted team captain and averaged 13.9 and 2.9.

At the end of his senior year, Stokes was named team MVP and second-team All-Big Ten.

Stokes ranks in the top 35 for career scoring and top 10 for career assists and steals at The Ohio State University.

During his career, Ohio State went 76-44 overall and 42-30 in the Big Ten. The team made the NCAA tournament in Stokes' freshman, sophomore, and senior seasons (1981-82, 1982-83, and 1984-85), and the NIT tournament his junior season (1983-84).

His Ohio State teammates included future NBA players Clark Kellogg, Tony Campbell, Granville Waiters, Dennis Hopson, Brad Sellers, and Clinton Smith.

During his Ohio State career, Stokes competed against multiple future NBA players, including All Stars Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, and Karl Malone.

Broadcasting Career

Since 1997, Ron Stokes has been the radio color commentator for Ohio State Men's Basketball. His broadcasts through Ohio State Sports Network are aired on 62 local radio stations, including flagship stations 97.1 WBNS-FM (The Fan) and 1460 WBNS-AM (ESPN Columbus).

In 1995, Stokes began providing pregame and postgame commentary on Ohio State Men's Basketball on these same radio stations. He was promoted to in-game color commentator before the start of the 1997-98 season. The following season (1998-99), he was joined by the "Voice of the Buckeyes" Paul Keels, who provides play-by-play for both Ohio State Men's Basketball and Ohio State Football.

During his time as a broadcaster, Stokes has covered two Final Fours and ten NCAA regionals.

Stokes co-hosts the Jake Diebler Show that is aired on radio stations across Ohio, and he has hosted similar shows featuring previous Ohio State Basketball coaches Chris Holtman, Thad Matta, and Jim O-Brien.

Stokes also makes frequent appearances on radio sports talk shows and the sports segments of TV news programs across Ohio.

In 2023, Stokes – along with Paul Keels – were inducted into the Greater Columbus Basketball Legends Hall of Fame.

Business Career

After college, Ron Stokes worked in advertising sales, eventually purchasing marketing firm Three Leaf Productions in 2003. Three Leaf was named to the Columbus Business First Fast 50 five consecutive years during the company's early growth. In 2015, Three Leaf was selected as one of the Smart 50 businesses by Smart Business Magazine. Three Leaf was presented with the Minority Business Enterprise of the Year award for Class III by the Ohio Minority Supplier Development Council in 2020 and 2016.

Stokes currently serves on the Board of Directors at German American Bancorp, Inc. (Nasdaq: GABC). He also served on the Board of Directors at Heartland Bank prior to its acquisition by German American.

Stokes is also President of the Board at THE Foundation, an organization that partners with The Ohio State University to provide NIL monies to Ohio State Football and Men's Basketball players. He previously led The O Foundation, which did similar work specific to Ohio State Men's Basketball, before that organization merged with THE Foundation to combine efforts for both sports.

Philanthropic Ventures

In 2020, Ron joined forces with several former Canton McKinley Bulldogs athletes and created the organization Canton Outside of Canton. The group partners with the Canton Stark County Urban League and has raised over $300,000. It has held food drives that have provided turkeys and food boxes to over 1,000 families in the month of December for the past 6 years.