Ex-buckeye Redd to address virtual summer commencement
Ohio State University grads will hear from Buckeye great and former NBA All-star Michael Redd at a virtual commencement ceremony this summer.
Redd, an Olympic gold medalist who played three seasons for Ohio State from 1998 through 2000, will address about 1,600 graduates during the virtual event on Aug. 9, Ohio State announced Thursday.
The ceremony will be livestreamed from the Schottenstein Center at 2 p.m., but no students or families will be in attendance because of COVID-19 precautions. A pre-ceremony program with messages from graduates, deans and other OSU leaders will stream at 1:30 p.m.
“Michael was a leader on the court for Ohio State and continues to lead off the court in the Columbus community,” Ohio State Provost Bruce A. Mcpheron said in a written statement. “His commitment to excellence as an athlete and an entrepreneur will inspire our graduates as they prepare to lead in their communities.”
Redd, 40, attended Columbus West High School. After he graduated, Redd led the Big Ten in scoring as a freshman at Ohio State and helped take the Buckeyes to the Final Four at the end of his sophomore season.
He was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2000. He became an NBA All-star in 2004 and a five-time Bucks MVP. Redd earned a gold medal in 2008 when he competed with the U.S. Olympic team in Beijing.
The next year, Redd was elected into the Ohio State Athletics Hall of Fame and the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame.
Redd retired from the NBA in 2013 and returned to Columbus, where he finished his degree at Ohio State in 2015. In recent years, he has been involved in community outreach projects and developing and investing in tech startups. jsmola@dispatch.com @jennsmola