Purdue Basketball: Back to the Grind

Purdue kicked off the basketball season today.

I honestly don’t have much to say about it. There is plenty to discuss, but nothing new. We all know the narrative at this point.

“Can Purdue pull a Virginia and turn an inexplicable first round loss into fuel for a Final 4 run.”

Of course, there are finer points to this question.

Does Purdue up the pace on offense?

Does Purdue become more aggressive on defense?

Does Purdue stay the same and hope for a better result?

Can they break the press?

Can Zach Edey expand his game outside the lane while still dominating the paint?

How does rotation the rotation at the 3 and 4 shake out?

Who starts at the 3?

Can Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer make the sophomore jump?

We’ve covered all these questions in the past, and will get further into them as the season gets closer. Feel free to have at the in the comments if you’re so inclined.

I’m writing this to acknowledge the to start of the season so I don’t get accused of ignoring basketball coverage. Trust me folks, we’ve got content on the way starting in October.

Until then...

Is it...

Final 4 or bust

or

Final 4 or we’ll try again next season

I know I’ll be back regardless of the outcome, but there won’t be many better chances for Coach Painter to reach the promised land. My suggestion; feel free to keep March in the back of your mind, but don’t miss a historic regular season because you’re constantly fretting over the single elimination tournament at the end.

You’re living through the Golden Era of Purdue basketball.

Enjoy it.

Look for opponent previews starting next week. I’ll end with some things I found on the internet.