Question: What does Purdue need to continuing doing to be in a position to compete each year for the Big 10 Title, and as a result make it a Final Four?
Answer: I think first and foremost they just need to keep doing what they're doing. Purdue's recruiting at a very high level right now for a program that does things by the book, Matt Painter has really hit his stride, and this past season really was a statement season to the consistency this program has been able to grow into.
So the status quo right now is pretty solid and if things just keep going as they have the past few years, a lot of good things are going to happen, perhaps starting this season to come.
That said, college basketball is about to fundamentally change with the advent of open transfers and to a lesser extent whatever new dynamics Name-Image-Likeness present. I wouldn't anticipate Matt Painter changing proactively, but he has proven to be pretty adaptable over the years, more modern as a coach than whatever old-school sensibilities might define him. I think he's very capable of changing with the times.
Nevertheless, for a program-builder who players like but who isn't always a coddler, and who values honesty and whatnot, there are potential threats to come, and how Purdue navigates those could solidify what's happening now, or affect things adversely. The changes coming are seismic, and I think for a lot of coaches of a certain generation, retirement and/or the NBA might be looking way more attractive than they did before. Painter sort of straddles generations, though, and again, I think he's a pretty adaptable and pragmatic. I wouldn't anticipate any problems that he won't try to dash on the front end by recruiting the right guys, as he's always tried to do, but this does all bear mentioning.
I guess in a less-abstract sense, for Purdue to keep contending for Big Ten titles, they just have to keep getting the kinds of players they've been getting. They have a good run going of always having a strong low-post game, but also a wealth of shooters (even if they didn't shoot terribly well this year). Consistent and commanding guard play is probably the next frontier on paper, and I think the impacts Carsen Edwards and Jaden Ivey have had speaks to the important of having at least one real playmaker on the team at all times.
I think the days of Purdue being defined as a defensive program are pretty much over even though Painter will always approach things as if that remains the case, but I do think a consistent defensive identity is something they're going to need to develop and sustain in order to win at a really high level. They've overachieved the past few years with less-than-ideal pieces and that's a very positive thing, but they got exposed by North Texas, and top-five seeds never won't to go into the NCAA Tournament facing acute matchup concerns against low-majors.
At the Big Ten level, Purdue's championship outlook will obviously be affected by the field. If the Big Ten's strength top to bottom has staying power, the path to a Big Ten title will be tougher (for everyone) in exchange for Selection Sunday cachet being strong. But if Illinois, Penn State, Rutgers and Minnesota fall back and stay back, suddenly the league isn't as horrifying. Throw in Nebraska and Northwestern and that's nearly half the league, and that's assuming Indiana and Iowa and those programs can get back to at least being solid and consistent top-half teams. There's no telling how this is going to go, because some of these schools will just be recruiting new teams every spring.
As for the Final Four, you just have to keep having good and relatively complete teams and sooner or later your time will come.
Luck matters.
Matt Painter's had five teams that I think could have held Final Four aspirations to varying degrees of reality, and three of them were undercut by major injury, one wound up drawing Kansas in Kansas City and the other lost an Elite Eight game for the ages that was really kind of a fluke, if we're being honest.
That's just the objective reality of the Painter Era at Purdue, but if he can keep putting together teams like the one he has right now, Purdue's time is bound to come, I'd think.
Answer: I think first and foremost they just need to keep doing what they're doing. Purdue's recruiting at a very high level right now for a program that does things by the book, Matt Painter has really hit his stride, and this past season really was a statement season to the consistency this program has been able to grow into.
So the status quo right now is pretty solid and if things just keep going as they have the past few years, a lot of good things are going to happen, perhaps starting this season to come.
That said, college basketball is about to fundamentally change with the advent of open transfers and to a lesser extent whatever new dynamics Name-Image-Likeness present. I wouldn't anticipate Matt Painter changing proactively, but he has proven to be pretty adaptable over the years, more modern as a coach than whatever old-school sensibilities might define him. I think he's very capable of changing with the times.
Nevertheless, for a program-builder who players like but who isn't always a coddler, and who values honesty and whatnot, there are potential threats to come, and how Purdue navigates those could solidify what's happening now, or affect things adversely. The changes coming are seismic, and I think for a lot of coaches of a certain generation, retirement and/or the NBA might be looking way more attractive than they did before. Painter sort of straddles generations, though, and again, I think he's a pretty adaptable and pragmatic. I wouldn't anticipate any problems that he won't try to dash on the front end by recruiting the right guys, as he's always tried to do, but this does all bear mentioning.
I guess in a less-abstract sense, for Purdue to keep contending for Big Ten titles, they just have to keep getting the kinds of players they've been getting. They have a good run going of always having a strong low-post game, but also a wealth of shooters (even if they didn't shoot terribly well this year). Consistent and commanding guard play is probably the next frontier on paper, and I think the impacts Carsen Edwards and Jaden Ivey have had speaks to the important of having at least one real playmaker on the team at all times.
I think the days of Purdue being defined as a defensive program are pretty much over even though Painter will always approach things as if that remains the case, but I do think a consistent defensive identity is something they're going to need to develop and sustain in order to win at a really high level. They've overachieved the past few years with less-than-ideal pieces and that's a very positive thing, but they got exposed by North Texas, and top-five seeds never won't to go into the NCAA Tournament facing acute matchup concerns against low-majors.
At the Big Ten level, Purdue's championship outlook will obviously be affected by the field. If the Big Ten's strength top to bottom has staying power, the path to a Big Ten title will be tougher (for everyone) in exchange for Selection Sunday cachet being strong. But if Illinois, Penn State, Rutgers and Minnesota fall back and stay back, suddenly the league isn't as horrifying. Throw in Nebraska and Northwestern and that's nearly half the league, and that's assuming Indiana and Iowa and those programs can get back to at least being solid and consistent top-half teams. There's no telling how this is going to go, because some of these schools will just be recruiting new teams every spring.
As for the Final Four, you just have to keep having good and relatively complete teams and sooner or later your time will come.
Luck matters.
Matt Painter's had five teams that I think could have held Final Four aspirations to varying degrees of reality, and three of them were undercut by major injury, one wound up drawing Kansas in Kansas City and the other lost an Elite Eight game for the ages that was really kind of a fluke, if we're being honest.
That's just the objective reality of the Painter Era at Purdue, but if he can keep putting together teams like the one he has right now, Purdue's time is bound to come, I'd think.
