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The spring evaluation period is in full swing and Matt Painter has been busy. Lately he handed out an offer to junior-to-be Joey Brunk, who recently completed his sophomore season at Southport HS on the south side of Indianapolis.
Brunk is a rising post player at 6'9" 200 pounds that already has offers from New Mexico, Iowa, and Xavier. Indiana and Notre Dame are also interested. Scout has him as a 3-star prospect, while Rivals has yet to rank him and ESPN hasn't rated him yet either.
This past season was a productive sophomore campaign, as he averaged 14.5 points and 7.75 rebounds per game along with a block and 1.5 assists. The assists number is promising, as it shows he can pass for a big man, something very useful in Purdue's offense that works inside-out well when we at least try it. He was part of a Southport team that started very slowly, but came on strong before finishing 15-8. Southport was 1-4 at one point but won 12 of its last 14 before dropping an overtime game in the sectional final to Pike.
This is a quick turnaround for a team that went 1-19 the year before, but part of the reason there is that Brunk was a freshman playing at Park Tudor then. Southport hasn't even won a sectional since 2000, so if he leads them on a deep tournament run the next two seasons it will be quite the addition.
Here is some video for Brunk:
What I like about Brunk is that he can score the basketball by putting it on the floor. He shows some fire and is active on the glass. He can do a little bit of everything, so he is not a traditional back-to-the-basket limited post player. He can drive to the basket and score the important garbage baskets on offensive rebounds.
Brunk's commitment may hinge on what other players do like Barret Benson and Derrik Smits. Coach Painter is clearly looking for a new post player to pair with Isaac Haas, and he may go for two since post depth has always been an issue. At the very least this is a good offer that can pay off in the end.