Purdue Basketball: Three Boilers Went For Gold, Now It Is Time To Go For It All

Jaden Ivey. Gold Medal, All Tournament Team.

Caleb Furst. Gold Medal.

Zach Edey, Bronze Medal, All Tournament Team.

But now, it is back to West Lafayette to chase more trophies, accolades and victories.

The 2021-2022 Boilermakers have plenty of hype and that only continued to grow during this past week during the FIBA U19 Global Tournament.

Zach Edey could be considered the tournament’s most dominant player, the big man averaged a double double.

Jaden Ivey showed why he will be a future lottery pick, getting to the rim and showing an improved touch from deep.

Caleb Furst showed that he and Ivey have some solid chemistry already, and that he will be able to play the four a bit for Coach Painter.

But, as we know, these three are only a portion of the Big Ten Favorites for upcoming season.

First Team All-B1G Center is back, Trevion Williams has shown some improvements on social media, as he prepped for the NBA and worked out daily. He will be paired with the Big Maple, who again, was the most dominant player in the FIBA U19 Tournament.

Mason Gillis returns, he will have a short suspension to start the season, but the do it all Sophomore and definition of a glue player should return to the starting line up. Behind him expect Caleb Furst and Trey Kauffman-Renn to make some noise, they did not come to Purdue to ride the pine.

At the always interchangeable “2” and “3” positions, Sasha Stefanovic should be leaned upon, as well as the previously mentioned, Jaden Ivey. Brandon Newman will compete for 6th man of the year in the Big Ten with his shooting ability and athleticism, Ethan Morton will be improved and look to make a splash and could see some time as the back up point guard as well.

The always steady and defensive stopper Eric Hunter Jr should start at the one, but with Coach Painter’s system, the “1” and “2” seem interchangeable. I think we will see a lot of Jaden Ivey initiating the offense. Isaiah Thompson is slated to come off the bench again.

Purdue, was the most represented school in that tournament. It is no wonder why expectations are so damn high. 2 of the 5 on the all tournament team were Boilermakers.

Now, it is time to put it all together, March isn’t too far away and I am ready to see a run.