Bazley began playing high school basketball at Finneytown High School in Springfield Township, Ohio. He was ruled ineligible for the first half of his freshman season. As a sophomore, Bazley started drawing interest from several college programs, including Ohio State and West Virginia. On December 19, 2015, he posted 25 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 blocks against Woodward High School. After averaging 15.8 points, 12.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.4 blocks and 1.5 steals, he was named to the Division III Southwest Ohio all-district second team. Entering his junior campaign, Bazley was the top-ranked player in Ohio. In July 2016, it was announced that he would transfer to Princeton High School in Sharonville, Ohio. He was sidelined for his first 11 games because of transfer rules. In August, Bazley committed to Ohio State, being rated a four-star recruit by 247Sports at the time. On January 11, 2017, he debuted for Princeton, recording 11 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals in a loss at the Flyin' To The Hoop Invitational. In April, Bazley announced his de-commitment from Ohio State due to his desire for a "bigger stage." About two months later, he committed to Syracuse, and in November, he signed a letter of intent. On January 16, 2018, in his senior season, Bazley was named to the West team for the 2018 McDonald's All-American Boys Game. On January 19, he led his Princeton team with 24 points in a nationally televised game against top recruit Romeo Langford and New Albany High School. Bazley also took part in the Jordan Brand Classic and Nike Hoop Summit in April.
Professional career
On March 30, 2018, Bazley announced that he would skip college with plans to join the NBA G League directly from high school. In April, he hired sports agentRich Paul of Klutch Sports Group. Syracuse head coachJim Boeheim, who Bazley was expected to play under in college before the move, responded, "I hope he does great. But I don't think it's the way it will be. I think it will be proven it's not the way to get to the NBA." An article from Bleacher Report speculated that Bazley could be "the face of the end of one-and-done" for NBA draft eligibility because of his decision. On August 27, Bazley announced that he would drop his G League plans altogether, opting instead to train on his own for the season. On October 25, Bazley began a three-month internship with New Balance worth $1 million. After concluding his internship, Bazley became one of the first players to enter the 2019 NBA draft, later being named one of 77 overall prospects invited to the 2019 NBA Draft Combine. Bazley was drafted 23rd overall by the Utah Jazz but was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, who then traded him to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
