I took my son to the Father/Son basketball camp and it was a great day for both of us. Highly recommend to all.
Here’s a quick overview of the day:
· All the players were there (with the exception of Swanigan) and were engaged the whole day. The camp started at 9 AM but the players showed up around 8:30 AM and rebounded for the kids before the camp started. Camp ended around 4:30 PM with player/coach autographs/pictures.
· We started by going in to the media room and each kid signed their ‘letter of intent’ to play at Purdue. You go up to the main table with your son and Painter. The kids sign the form and you get a picture with your son and Painter signing the paperwork. The players sit in the media seats and applaud once you sign the paperwork.
· We started on Cardinal Court going through stretching exercises and then worked on basic fundamentals – the assistant coaches ran this portion. Haas joined the kids in running the relay races – he’s great with kids.
· Took tours of the locker room and film room. Jack Owens ran through a pregame scouting report on IU in the film room. Interesting to hear him break down film and talk about what they were trying to exploit and also stop with regards to IU. Owens is very impressive.
· Painter walked us through a pregame talk in the locker room with bullet points that they typically use before a game. Then the players walked the kids from the locker room to the top of the tunnel where they jumped around and then led the kids onto the court for a layup line.
· Good Q&A with both the players and Painter separately in a meeting room.
· Lots of competitive drills (shooting) in Mackey.
Here are some of my takes from being around the players/coaches during the day:
· Great group of guys. Vince Edwards is going to be the next leader of this team after Ray Davis graduates. He stepped up and ran the Q&A with the kids.
· VE looks to have put on some muscle since the season ended. Thought he looked stronger and more filled out in the shoulders/arms. Also, thought Kendall looked a bit bigger in the shoulders.
· Weatherford is taller than I thought he'd be. He’s a legit 6’2” (which is what he’s listed as) and he’s built like a rock. He looked bigger than Kramer.
· Taylor also looked to have filled out quite a bit.
· Haas is always willing to talk to everyone and would just start playing one-on-one with the kids whenever there was a break.
· Hammons is a genuinely nice person and easy to talk with – I asked him about the technical from the game at IU. He said he was just pumped and yelled toward the crowd. As he was getting ready to turn and run back down the court he may have turned his head and looked at Perea but it was unintentional. Of course he said the crowd down there is crazy and they yell all sorts of things at you. He said the toughest places to play also include Michigan State, Ohio State, and Iowa b/c the students are right on top of you near the bench.
· All of the assistant coaches were great – especially Owens. He and Bloom were the 2 guys that ran the camp. Painter also was very good and was there all day. He did a great job talking with just the Dad’s during a Q&A. As always he’s very candid.
· Painter was very complimentary of Swanigan and raved about his work ethic.
I could write a lot more about the day but will stop here. My son was excited before the camp started and it lived up to his expectations.
Would like to hear comments from other Dad's that were at the camp.
Here’s a quick overview of the day:
· All the players were there (with the exception of Swanigan) and were engaged the whole day. The camp started at 9 AM but the players showed up around 8:30 AM and rebounded for the kids before the camp started. Camp ended around 4:30 PM with player/coach autographs/pictures.
· We started by going in to the media room and each kid signed their ‘letter of intent’ to play at Purdue. You go up to the main table with your son and Painter. The kids sign the form and you get a picture with your son and Painter signing the paperwork. The players sit in the media seats and applaud once you sign the paperwork.
· We started on Cardinal Court going through stretching exercises and then worked on basic fundamentals – the assistant coaches ran this portion. Haas joined the kids in running the relay races – he’s great with kids.
· Took tours of the locker room and film room. Jack Owens ran through a pregame scouting report on IU in the film room. Interesting to hear him break down film and talk about what they were trying to exploit and also stop with regards to IU. Owens is very impressive.
· Painter walked us through a pregame talk in the locker room with bullet points that they typically use before a game. Then the players walked the kids from the locker room to the top of the tunnel where they jumped around and then led the kids onto the court for a layup line.
· Good Q&A with both the players and Painter separately in a meeting room.
· Lots of competitive drills (shooting) in Mackey.
Here are some of my takes from being around the players/coaches during the day:
· Great group of guys. Vince Edwards is going to be the next leader of this team after Ray Davis graduates. He stepped up and ran the Q&A with the kids.
· VE looks to have put on some muscle since the season ended. Thought he looked stronger and more filled out in the shoulders/arms. Also, thought Kendall looked a bit bigger in the shoulders.
· Weatherford is taller than I thought he'd be. He’s a legit 6’2” (which is what he’s listed as) and he’s built like a rock. He looked bigger than Kramer.
· Taylor also looked to have filled out quite a bit.
· Haas is always willing to talk to everyone and would just start playing one-on-one with the kids whenever there was a break.
· Hammons is a genuinely nice person and easy to talk with – I asked him about the technical from the game at IU. He said he was just pumped and yelled toward the crowd. As he was getting ready to turn and run back down the court he may have turned his head and looked at Perea but it was unintentional. Of course he said the crowd down there is crazy and they yell all sorts of things at you. He said the toughest places to play also include Michigan State, Ohio State, and Iowa b/c the students are right on top of you near the bench.
· All of the assistant coaches were great – especially Owens. He and Bloom were the 2 guys that ran the camp. Painter also was very good and was there all day. He did a great job talking with just the Dad’s during a Q&A. As always he’s very candid.
· Painter was very complimentary of Swanigan and raved about his work ethic.
I could write a lot more about the day but will stop here. My son was excited before the camp started and it lived up to his expectations.
Would like to hear comments from other Dad's that were at the camp.
