Purdue Basketball on the rise

Looks like Purdue got a better hire than I realized in new coach Matt Painter. Purdue Basketball arguably had its two worst seasons of all time in a row and Painter could have the #1 recruiting class in the country for next year. I guess he can sell the chance for all 4 of them to start freshmen year for an in-state school and be known for restoring tradition.


Boilers snagging top Indiana recruits in class of '07
July 25, 2006 www.sportingnews.com

Yesterday's big news in college basketball recruiting was Ohio State. Today's big news is Purdue. Last year, the Buckeyes snagged top prospects like Greg Oden and Mike Conley out of Indiana under the nose of Mike Davis. Now Purdue has snagged four top 100 recruits, all from Indiana, away from new IU coach Kelvin Sampson before he ever really had a chance to get them.

With his program in the middle of a long-term recruiting malaise and coming off a season of single-digit wins, second-year head coach Matt Painter recently secured commitments from JaJuan Johnson and three AAU teammates: E'twaun Moore, Robbie Hummel and Scott Martin.

As teammates on the SYF Players, Moore, Hummel and Martin know a little something about winning. They recently finished runner-up at the prestigious Nike Peach Jam in Augusta, Ga., and in the spring they won the Nike Memorial Day tournament in Nashville, Tenn. All three players have strong all-around games and a great feel for playing with each other. In fact, speaking of chemistry, they all three committed to Purdue within a week's time.

Johnson, the other Purdue commitment, is not as ready to play immediately in the Big Ten as the other three recruits. But the long and mobile big man from Indianapolis has more upside than the other three. If he gains significant strength and develops some offensive confidence, he could map out a career similar to late-blossoming Connecticut center Hilton Armstrong.

So how good is the 2007 recruiting class of Purdue? Some have this Boilermakers' class pegged as the best in the history of the basketball program. Regardless, the class is certainly positioned to rank as a top ten class for 2007.