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Today we feature the guy who has kind of been forgotten by many Purdue fans, but he is a freshman coming out of a much-needed redshirt year.
Emmanuel Dowuona - Fr. (RS)
Accra, Ghana (Miami Westwood HS)
6’10”, 230 pounds
Center
2019-20 Projection: Reserve at center
Last season was rough for Dowuona. The big man knew he was likely going to redshirt in order to develop more of an offensive game, but he then sustained a foot injury that had him in a walking boot a lot. He was still a top 100 ESPN commitment for the 2018 recruiting cycle and a 4-star per 247.
The good news is that we don’t have to rush him. Trevion Williams and Matt Haarms will take up the vast majority of minutes at the 5 this year. Dowuona will still likely get some playing time because he is a tremendous defensive presence. He only played half of his senior year down in Miami due to his circumstances with coming to the U.S., but he averaged 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 4 blocks. According to his Purdue bio he played soccer for several years before picking up basketball four year ago. You know who else did that? Hakeem Olajuwon.
Of course, I don’t expect Dowuona to become the next Dream, but his development will be interesting this coming year. He is more of an old school center compared to Haarms and he has a ways to go, but he should be a solid player in time.