This weekend was one of the top summer basketball events in the Midwest as the Adidas Invitaitonal took place all over the Indianapolis Area. Purdue's lone commitment for 2014 in Dakota Mathias was in action as well as several other top targets over the next few seasons. Hyron Edwards, P.J. Thompson, and a new player on Purdue's radar all took part.
Dakota Mathias
Mathias took part in the Gold bracket for the Northwest Ohio Basketball Club and his group won the tournament with a 63-62 win over the Dejuan Blair All Stars. Mathias hit the game-winner at the buzzer to beat Team Indiana. Mathias as described as a team leader and versatile scorer:
I'd take a Dakota Mathias for any offense. Versatile scorer and great passer. Creates chances for everyone. #Purdue
— Chris Emma (@CEmmaFOX) July 11, 2013
Mathias also may be key in getting one of our top 2014 targets as well:
#Purdue commit Dakota Mathias has been recruiting Vince Edwards. He feels Edwards is leaning toward the Boilers.
— Chris Emma (@CEmmaFOX) July 4, 2013
Statistically Mathias had 36 in the quarterfinals of bracket play and with a poor shooting game in the final (just 2-of-9 for four points) he had six assists.
Hyron Edwards
Edwards is my favorite guy in the 2015 class and one I feel we have to get. He is reportedly close to E'Twaun Moore since they both are East Chicago guys and we absolutely need to reclaim the Region in recruiting. Edwards was playing for Indiana Elite 2015 in the Platinum bracket and led them to a 97-76 win for the weekend championship. Edwards had 33 points in the championship game and was a standout for his quickness. The title game came after he left a game Saturday with a minor knee injury.
Hyron Edwards is been crazy good this game. AAU he was trying to go for 40 points. May get there.
— Eric Gardner (@Gardner_247) July 14, 2013
Edwards is currently the No. 53 player in the class of 2015 with both Indiana and Purdue heavily pursuing him.
P.J. Thompson, Tyler Ulis, and Trevon Bluiett
Thompson was playing at the Peach Jam this weekend down in South Carolina with the Spiece Indy Elite Team with Trevon Bluiett. Bluieett averaged 21.8 points per game over five games, fourth best of the weekend tournament that was loaded with D-1 talent. Tyler Ulis was also in his tournament and had 7.8 assists per game. Thompson and Bluiett were 2-3 with Spiece Indy Heat.
New Offer: J.P. Macura
With most of the coaching staff at the Adidas event over the weekend it was a great chance for some evaluation of different players. One player even officially earned a Purdue offer in J.P. Macura:
J.P. Macura can do a lot of things with the basketball. His jumpshot is solid from most anywhere on the court and he brings a plethora of scoring ability. Macura is a high-energy prospect that has the ability and smarts to continue to progress.
Macura is officially a 2014 prospect as a 6'5" shooting guard from Lakeville, Minnesota. He is in the Rivals 150 at No. 126.
Bryant McIntosh
I was able to see McIntosh earlier this year when Greensburg won the Class 3A state championship, but I wrote more about teammates Ryan Welage and Sean Sellers. At the time McIntosh had committed to Indiana State, but he recently opened his commitment back up. Auburn, Creighton, Dayton, Florida State, Memphis, Missouri, and Northwestern have officially offered the 6'2" member of the Eric Gordon All-Stars, but Purdue expressed a lot of interest over the weekend:
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound guard said Purdue had contacted Keeton after McIntosh had decommitted from Indiana State, and expressed interest in the Boilermakers. He said he is especially fond of Purdue head coach Matt Painter.
"Coach Painter's a great coach," McIntosh said. "I think he runs a great program there. They had a tough year last year, but in his previous years, they've been really successful and it would be a great opportunity to play in the Big Ten."
So who gets the four spots?
According to our handy scholarship grid Purdue has four spots left in the class of 2014, but with no projected seniors in the 2014-15 season those scholarships also carry over to the 2015 class. That means we have four scholarships to use over two years, with more coming available if someone like A.J. Hammons goes to the NBA early (which seems likely).
That said, I am still working off of only four spots total being available in the 2014 and 2015 classes combined. Here, in order, or the players I would like to see us lock up
Vince Edwards (2014) - Michigan and Purdue are locked in a mortal struggle and I want to just see us win one of these for once.
Trevon Bluiett (2014) - Apparently we have a better shot than I originally thought with him. The kid is a winner and an incredibly impressive player to see in person.
Hyron Edwards (2015) - As mentioned above, we have to get the kid from E'Twaun's former HS. If we don't get a 2014 PG we need him even more because Ronnie Johnson would be a senior when Edwards is a freshman.
Isaac Haas (2014) - With the possibility that Hammons is gone Purdue needs a replacement. Haas has listed Purdue in his top five with UAB leading the way.
The Next Four:
If Purdue doesn't get all four of these guys, here are my next favorites.
Steve McElvene (2014) - Yes, I am still driving his bandwagon. Purdue continues to show interest, but there is no offer yet. We need to offer because he can be a steal. Shoot, let's get Haas and McElvene so big Steve can develop behind him.
Jalen Coleman (2015) - I liked what I saw from him in the state championship game and now he is off to LaPorte LaLumiere for the next two seasons.
Tyler Ulis (2014) - Seems like a pipe dream since he is very high on Michigan State, but we're still in the running for now.
P.J. Thomspon (2014) - Thompson is a very underrated point guard that is only going to get better.