Duane Washington Jr. was the perfect representative of Ohio State’s chaotic last season.

The junior guard, a former three-star recruit out of Sierra Canyon, was a driving force behind the Buckeyes’ dominant start to the year.

In just the third game of 2019 against Villanova, Washington nearly tore the roof off Value City Arena, exploding for 11 of Ohio State’s first 17 points on three quick-trigger three-pointers and a fastbreak dunk.

On Dec. 23, the day Ohio State peaked at No. 2 in the AP Poll, Washington was shooting 50 percent from three-point range on nearly five attempts per game. His team had won 10 of 11 and looked invincible, having taken down a handful of ranked teams in the early going.

Then came the drop off.

Ohio State lost four in a row, capped by a noncompetitive defeat to Indiana in which Washington was benched and subsequently suspended one game. Buckeye coach Chris Holtmann cited a lack of effort and “attention to detail” after the Indiana game in which Washington only played eight minutes.

The rest of the campaign, Washington was inconsistent at best and ice cold at worst- similar to his Ohio State team. He shot under 40 percent from the field and just 34 percent from distance in his final 18 games after the suspension.

Such is the case for Washington.

Inconsistency has been the defining characteristic in his first two seasons in Columbus. With a knack for starting games on fire and burying contested treys, Washington has moments where he appears to be the best player on the court.

However, with those moments come the head-scratching shots. And the turnovers (more so than the assists). And the lack of focus on both ends of the court.

With all of that said, Washington is still the top returning scorer for Ohio State. He shot nearly 40 percent from three and registered eight games scoring 15 points or more. He improved as a secondary ball handler throughout the season, and took on the backup point guard role when D.J. Carton left the team.

Washington is an enigma. His junior season brings plenty of question marks, but a plethora of positives to a Buckeye team full of scoring punch.

Washington’s best skill is his readiness. Watch any possession on offense- his legs are bent, hands up, expecting to receive the ball and score.

He is quick to shoot off the catch, showing no hesitancy to rise up with or without a defender in his face.

His movement into open spaces when teammates drive is critical to his game, creating scoring opportunities for Ohio State that did not seem available seconds earlier.

The clip above may seem very slight, but Washington gives Kaleb Wesson a pass to make when his options seem slim. The hands never go down and his focus is always on receiving the pass and scoring- a kind of tunnel vision that sometimes hurts Washington.

His gather, quick shot fake, and single side-dribble into a shot is an advanced move. It is clear Washington works on this frequently, as his execution is smooth and does not affect his timing.

While Washington’s most efficient moments arise from organic situations and his own floor-spacing awareness, Holtmann is not afraid to run sets for him, especially in the middle of an offensive drought.

The play shown above was used on almost a game-to-game basis. Luther Muhammad drags the defense towards the baseline while Washington receives a double pin-down screen from two bigs and comes over the top towards the ball.

The idea is to give either Muhammad a lane to the basket or Washington a chance to create for himself.

Washington's shot was unreal here, but probably not the best one to take in a one-possession game against Michigan. That displays the kind of confidence he (and Chris Holtmann) holds in his shot-creation.

Washington is prepared for any conceivable three-point look he might receive. He holds both the trust in himself and the stroke to back up the five triple attempts he took per game last season.

As a catch-and-shoot weapon, Washington is deadly as a floor-spacer for a team that needs spacing.

Washington shot just 41.4 percent inside the arc last season, an alarmingly low number for a player with his scoring mentality.

He appears to have some level of craftiness inside, using scoop shots and floaters frequently, but lacks a first step or the explosion to free himself from defenders.

Couple that with his thin 6-foot-3 frame and a lack of vision on the drive, and the result is a lot of forced rushes into two or three defenders.

Against Cincinnati, Washington gets the matchup he wants, with a plodding big man guarding him.

Yet he rushes into a head-down drive and does not have the quickness or patience to beat his man off the dribble. Look at the shot he attempts- even if it were not directly into the defender’s arm, it would have a near-zero chance of even hitting the rim.

These kind of off-balance floating shots are a consistent result of Washington’s drives- Holtmann has pulled him from games multiple times for throwing up rushed shots in the lane.

His assist-to-turnover ratio was below one last season, not a good number for a guard, no matter how deadly of a shooter he was.

Washington does have some touch on his runners inside. He is able to loft this shot over two Maryland defenders while moving away from the basket.

However, he misses two obvious passes on his way to the tough shot. Kaleb Wesson completely seals his defender in the lane, and a pass over the top would be a layup for Wesson.

At the same time, C.J. Walker’s man loses sight of him, and Washington does not even glance at the wide-open shooter to his left. This is the unfortunate side of his tunnel vision as a scorer.

These reads are not overly difficult. Washington did make strides as a passer last season, and I would expect to see more improvement his junior season, but he is often too laser-focused on scoring.

As a finisher, Washington is just not good yet. He floats away from contact and creates very difficult shots for himself, relying on his touch instead of getting to the rim.

With some work, that shooter’s touch can drag Washington into positive territory as an opportunistic driver.

With the aforementioned loss of D.J. Carton, Ohio State had just a single point guard on its roster for over half of Big Ten play last season.

As a result, Washington was given extended minutes as lead ball handler and showed some promise late in the campaign.

Through the Buckeyes’ 11 games without Carton, he had just two contests without recording an assist. In the first seven games of that stretch, Washington’s assists nearly doubled his turnovers, capped by a five-dime performance against Rutgers.

Washington will not be asked to do a lot as a passer. He can make the correct reads in the pick-and-roll and deliver passes on time, though he does not hide where he is going with the ball.

He showed improving patience running offensive sets too, working well with Kaleb Wesson in dribble hand off situations at the top of the arc and becoming a nice secondary playmaker.

Where he stood out to me was with his ability to stay composed in late-game situations. For someone used to being a go, go, go scorer, his understanding and patience against full-court presses was awesome to see.

This clip is not the prettiest display of control, but Washington was great in the late game against Maryland, handling the ball against pressure and sharing the reigns of the offense with Walker.

Even though behind-the-back dribbling and cross-court passes are far from ideal at this stage of the game, Washington’s confidence against pressure allows him to have the ball in his hands when the stakes are high.

With Abel Porter coming in to take hold of the second-team offense, Washington will not have to do as much as a ball handler this season. But it is nice to know there is another trustworthy option at the end of games.

As a player, Washington has his peaks and valleys. His shooting and touch of ball handling are a great fit for this Ohio State team, and if he can stay consistent on offense and execute whatever role he plays, he will be a big reason for its success this season.