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Here’s what Matt Painter said at B1G Media Days
By Nick Schultz
Published:
Purdue is considered one of the B1G favorites this season.
The Boilermakers return a lot of production from last year’s squad and have arguably the most depth in the conference. They’re led by Jaden Ivey, a First Team All-B1G nominee by the media this week, and only lost 2 players to the transfer portal last season.
It’s no wonder expectations are high for Matt Painter’s group this season. Purdue was picked 2nd in the B1G media preseason poll, finishing 1 first-place vote behind Michigan. There’s certainly a buzz around this steam in West Lafayette.
Painter met the media at B1G Media Days this week to talk about the players he brings back, managing the expectations heading into this season and the upset loss to North Texas in the 2021 NCAA Tournament.
Here’s some of what he had to say:
It's fair to say @BoilerBall's @CoachPainter likes his team's depth. Here's why.#B1GMediaDays pic.twitter.com/mNV7aRhXxL
— Purdue On BTN (@PurdueOnBTN) October 8, 2021
Painter: "I thought we had a great summer even though we weren't always together." Points out how well his guys did in U-19 Worlds.
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Painter: "We're going to have to have some sacrifice in our team like you have to have in any team that's successful."
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Painter: "What happens sometime when you're picked to be one of the better teams, your management of that ends up being an important part of your success. We don't want to have a celebration in November and December."
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Painter asked about how the North Texas loss affects them. Says Purdue has to use it as motivation the same way Virginia used the UMBC loss to propel them to the national title the next year. Painter does point out they didn't sleep on North Texas. Knew how good they were.
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Painter says it "blows my mind" that Brian Waddell of Carmel didn't have more scholarship offers.
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Painter said Trey Kaufmann-Renn's hand injury held him back but he's getting back into shape.
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Painter: "A lot of people in college basketball say you can't play big, because a lot of people don't have good bigs."
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Says there are games they won't play that way at all. Will very much be based on matchups. And points out he's got good options at the 4 if he doesn't go big.
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) October 8, 2021
Nick Schultz is a columnist and breaking news writer for Saturday Tradition. A 2020 graduate of Loyola Chicago, he covered the Ramblers' 2018 Final Four run from beginning to end and has worked at NBC Sports Chicago. Follow Nick on Twitter @NickSchultz_7.