2018 Purdue Basketball Recruiting Update

Purdue was dealt a bit of a blow today in recruiting for the 2018 basketball class. Damezi Anderson, a top 100 6’6” forward from South Bend, was a 100% Crystal Ball prediction on 247 for Purdue, but Archie Miller at Indiana swooped in and stole him.

This is a bit of a shock because he was a pretty strong Purdue lean. He has been around 100 nationally and was a nice, athletic forward that has been up and down. When he was good he was really good. When bad, however…

Such is the game with recruiting, however. Right now Purdue is in the window to close on many of its targets. The ultra blue chip guys often go well into the season, but Purdue has long been good with the 51-100 guys in the ratings. WE already have Trevion Williams on board (rated 94 to Anderson’s 101), but what is the wish list right now?

First, as always, is the scholarship grid:

With Williams on board Purdue has four spots left over. This is a critical class because Purdue loses so much with four senior starters departing after this season. We will need at least one or two instant impact players, as Ryan Cline and Carsen Edwards will be only guys with extensive experience left. Here is who is left on the board:

Romeo Langford – New Albany – Sure, it is probably a pipe dream at this point, but at one time Caleb Swanigan had no chance of coming to Purdue. Langford is the highest in-state player and is currently the No. 5 player nationally. Carsen Edwards got to play with him over in Egypt, so that has to help at least a little. The big names of Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, etc. are all coming around and this kid can go wherever he wants to go. He hasn’t even named a top “whatever” yet, so for now, we’re still in the running. It seems unlikely, however.

Robert Phinisee – McCutcheon – Phinisee has had a rough summer, falling all the way to 120 in the rankings. That’s not to say he is not a good player, however. He is just probably a tad undersized. He us a 5’11” point guard, but from what I have seen of him he can play fast. He had an excellent state tournament for McCutcheon, taking them to the regional a year after he played Langford in the state finals. Indiana is after him, too.

Jaelin Llewellyn – Virginia Episcopal – With Virginia going hard after Phinisee we’re going for a player in their back yard. Llewellyn is a 6’2” guard that is rated as the No. 142 player nationally. Here are some highlights for him since we’re relatively new to him.

Eric Hunter – Indianapolis Tindley – I was very partial to Anderson as an athletic wing, and him going to Indiana makes Hunter an even larger priority in my mind. We already know Hunter is a special player. He led Tindley to a state championship this spring. He is the No. 96 player in the class as a 6’3” scoring guard and the type of player we can definitely use. By almost every service he is a top 100 guys and fits the mold of “athletic wing” that we could use.

Emmanuel Dowuona – Westwood Chistian, Miami – Purdue is going hard after the 6’10” center who is definitely a project. He is not the hulking presence that A.J. Hammons and Isaac has have been, but he is a defense first rim protector that is growing into more of a wing player. If Purdue is taking a true center in this class it seems like it would be Dowuona, but Georgia Tech has a great shot too.

Aaron Henry – Ben Davis – Henry surprised a lot of people this spring by leading Ben Davis to the Class 4A state title here in Indiana. That was supposed to be Langford or Phinisee’s spot. Henry is that 6’6” athletic small forward that is going to make some team very, very happy. He has been a bit of a late bloomer, that’s fine. Butler is probably the main competition.

Talen Horton-Tucker – Chicago Simeon – Painter seems to have a type he wants in this class: a 6’3”-6’7” athletic wing that can shoot and score the ball. Horton-Tucker is another four-star player that has a bunch of high majors after him, including Illinois and Northwestern.

With four spots my dream is Langford, but that seems unlikely. A more realistic class is Llewellyn, Hunter, Henry, and Dowuona.