Jacob Epperson

[oldboiler52]

He committed to Creighton last night . I am convinced this was a miss for Purdue the kid is legit . Next up Malik Ondigo I am predicting he will Boiler Up ! Having watched Ondigo play only twice IMO he is a project but has all the tools . With our roster we can afford to develop him .

 

[PU52Chevy]

He committed to Creighton last night . I am convinced this was a miss for Purdue the kid is legit . Next up Malik Ondigo I am predicting he will Boiler Up ! Having watched Ondigo play only twice IMO he is a project but has all the tools . With our roster we can afford to develop him .

Not a miss......the kid wanted to go to Creighton and made it known about 3 1/2 months ago...I wish him well. Painter will find the right person for the role and fits the Purdue family.

 

[djy2j]

Not a bash Painter post but I wish he could have used Swanigan's success to land a top of the line recruit for next year. Seems like a wasted opportunity.

 

[New Pal Boiler]

He committed to Creighton last night . I am convinced this was a miss for Purdue the kid is legit . Next up Malik Ondigo I am predicting he will Boiler Up ! Having watched Ondigo play only twice IMO he is a project but has all the tools . With our roster we can afford to develop him .

Ondigo's a project?? We need someone to play the backup 5 about 8 months from now...

 

[BoiledSteel]

Not a bash Painter post but I wish he could have used Swanigan's success to land a top of the line recruit for next year. Seems like a wasted opportunity.

The recruit still makes the ultimate decision on where to go. A coach and do all the selling and recruiting they want, but in the end it boils down to what the kid wants.

Some on here and I am not saying you, think that just because certain things happen or we get certain players that we should have our pick of recruits. It just doesn't work out that way and especially in the current world with social media and being connected opens things up a lot more.

Painter has a pretty good class coming in to add to what will remain.

 

[Wolegib]

Painter did land a top recruit. his name is Eastern. and the future looks like a more guard oriented team with Eastern and C Edwards leading the way. . Our bigs will play a complementary role, not a staring role.

It was kind of obvious Epperson didn't want to come to Purdue when we were his best option at the early signing period, and he said he wanted to wait to showcase his talents during the season and see if he would receive any other offers.

It was also obvious that Haarms and Epperson are basically the same player with similar talents at the same position. neither one is a dominant inside the paint player or center despite their height.

Given a choice, I'd probably pick Epperson over Haarms. But, we have Haarms, so we don't need/want both. What we need is an inside oriented player. Is that player Odigo ? or maybe there is a grad transfer ?

the guy Painter missed on was not Epperson. the guy he missed was JJJ. Painter is not having much recent success recruiting La Lum players in the past 2 years.

We're in Odigo's top 5. he's more of a true center than Epperson or Haarms. He's a little thin and kind of a project. The word Taylor comes to mind. With Haas coming back for one more year, I believe he will have a year to develop.

The key to recruiting Odigo is simply beat ISU ! and prove we are we are worthy

 

[Purdue0034]

I am surprised. I thought Purdue would have been a good fit for Epperson. Not sure why you would want to live in Nebraska. I wish him luck, but think he made the wrong choice!

 

[SDBoiler1]

Not a bash Painter post but I wish he could have used Swanigan's success to land a top of the line recruit for next year. Seems like a wasted opportunity.

Jaren Jackson Jr. going to MSU really hurt. This class would look very different had Painter gotten him.

 

[StickPurdue]

Jaren Jackson Jr. going to MSU really hurt. This class would look very different had Painter gotten him.

Had we landed Jackson, we would not have gotten Wheeler. Very similar type player although I think Jackson is an inch or so taller. Jackson would have been nice, but Wheeler is a very serviceable replacement.

The biggest miss was on Manley. He was exactly what Purdue needed in the 2017 class. Tillman and Williams were unfortunate misses as well but I don't think we had a shot at either. Slick Rick went all in on Williams and Tillman had a pregnant girlfriend going to MSU. Manley was all on board for us until Roy swooped in. Manley would have been a star in Purdue's system. He will be just another guy and heavily recruited over at UNC, but I don't blame him. If Manley gets a shot and can stay healthy, he will shine. He seems like a very good kid too.

Wheeler and Eastern were very good pickups. They will go great playing alongside Carsen. Now we just need some size upfront. Haarms is big, but he isn't physical. Ondigo seems to be a physical and athletic big that can alter shots. Ondigo would be the perfect final piece and give Painter easily a top 20 class. Very solid after all of the early misses. I am not crazy about the Ewing pick, but it tells me Painter was concerned about depth next year. He has two years left so a miss on him isn't overly devastating. I like the addition of Sasha. He won't start or see the floor for atleast 2 years and even then it will likely be off the bench. But if he puts the work in, he could have a significant roll by the time he is a junior. Dan Dakich talked him up and said he comes from a great family. Sasha is the definition of a project, but there is always room for shooters willing to put the work on the defensive end.

 

[boilersallthewaynow]

Had we landed Jackson, we would not have gotten Wheeler. Very similar type player although I think Jackson is an inch or so taller. Jackson would have been nice, but Wheeler is a very serviceable replacement.

The biggest miss was on Manley. He was exactly what Purdue needed in the 2017 class. Tillman and Williams were unfortunate misses as well but I don't think we had a shot at either. Slick Rick went all in on Williams and Tillman had a pregnant girlfriend going to MSU. Manley was all on board for us until Roy swooped in. Manley would have been a star in Purdue's system. He will be just another guy and heavily recruited over at UNC, but I don't blame him. If Manley gets a shot and can stay healthy, he will shine. He seems like a very good kid too.

Wheeler and Eastern were very good pickups. They will go great playing alongside Carsen. Now we just need some size upfront. Haarms is big, but he isn't physical. Ondigo seems to be a physical and athletic big that can alter shots. Ondigo would be the perfect final piece and give Painter easily a top 20 class. Very solid after all of the early misses. I am not crazy about the Ewing pick, but it tells me Painter was concerned about depth next year. He has two years left so a miss on him isn't overly devastating. I like the addition of Sasha. He won't start or see the floor for atleast 2 years and even then it will likely be off the bench. But if he puts the work in, he could have a significant roll by the time he is a junior. Dan Dakich talked him up and said he comes from a great family. Sasha is the definition of a project, but there is always room for shooters willing to put the work on the defensive end.

Realistic. Nicely done.

If CMP wants to elevate his program then he will have to do better.

New HCs at iu and Illinois plus the rising programs at Minnesota and Northwestern are only going to increase Painter's challenges.

He needs a top notch recruiting assistant coach.

 

[tjreese]

Painter did land a top recruit. his name is Eastern. and the future looks like a more guard oriented team with Eastern and C Edwards leading the way. . Our bigs will play a complementary role, not a staring role.

It was kind of obvious Epperson didn't want to come to Purdue when we were his best option at the early signing period, and he said he wanted to wait to showcase his talents during the season and see if he would receive any other offers.

It was also obvious that Haarms and Epperson are basically the same player with similar talents at the same position. neither one is a dominant inside the paint player or center despite their height.

Given a choice, I'd probably pick Epperson over Haarms. But, we have Haarms, so we don't need/want both. What we need is an inside oriented player. Is that player Odigo ? or maybe there is a grad transfer ?

the guy Painter missed on was not Epperson. the guy he missed was JJJ. Painter is not having much recent success recruiting La Lum players in the past 2 years.

We're in Odigo's top 5. he's more of a true center than Epperson or Haarms. He's a little thin and kind of a project. The word Taylor comes to mind. With Haas coming back for one more year, I believe he will have a year to develop.

The key to recruiting Odigo is simply beat ISU ! and prove we are we are worthy

I thought Purdue would get the kid going to Louisville from the Fort and/or JJJ. Still, I'm not as worried with Odigo assuming he comes to Purdue. Like Old Boiler said...Purdue has a few next year AND that may have help move Epperson away. Gotta believe that Taylor gets healthy AND that could be a BAD assumption I know. Haas is still there, Vince is there, Haams is there, Wheeler is there. Most of the year and most of the teams have two bigs playing and the bigs are usually in the 6'9" status or so. The game is more offensive. Odigo if he were to come to Purdue does not need to be a scorer...pick up a few garbage and hit a 10 ft jumper in his lean frame is all that he would need in the early stages. He might add a little quickness in ball screen D and ball denial if defending the post. Purdue will have a lot of scoring options. We know Eastern is legit. It appears Wheeler is legit. TWO freshman that are legit to go with a team returning a lot of players that have won a lot of games is better than most years for Purdue. Everyone wants those great players, but this class next year for Purdue appears to be the best class other than the baby Boilers for Matt. Now maybe I need to look at some video of Odigo to see if my thoughts were in my sleep or not...

 

[ChoiceBeef]

Had we landed Jackson, we would not have gotten Wheeler. Very similar type player although I think Jackson is an inch or so taller. Jackson would have been nice, but Wheeler is a very serviceable replacement.

The biggest miss was on Manley. He was exactly what Purdue needed in the 2017 class. Tillman and Williams were unfortunate misses as well but I don't think we had a shot at either. Slick Rick went all in on Williams and Tillman had a pregnant girlfriend going to MSU. Manley was all on board for us until Roy swooped in. Manley would have been a star in Purdue's system. He will be just another guy and heavily recruited over at UNC, but I don't blame him. If Manley gets a shot and can stay healthy, he will shine. He seems like a very good kid too.

Wheeler and Eastern were very good pickups. They will go great playing alongside Carsen. Now we just need some size upfront. Haarms is big, but he isn't physical. Ondigo seems to be a physical and athletic big that can alter shots. Ondigo would be the perfect final piece and give Painter easily a top 20 class. Very solid after all of the early misses. I am not crazy about the Ewing pick, but it tells me Painter was concerned about depth next year. He has two years left so a miss on him isn't overly devastating. I like the addition of Sasha. He won't start or see the floor for atleast 2 years and even then it will likely be off the bench. But if he puts the work in, he could have a significant roll by the time he is a junior. Dan Dakich talked him up and said he comes from a great family. Sasha is the definition of a project, but there is always room for shooters willing to put the work on the defensive end.

The Tillman pregnant girlfriend story is bs. That was started by some Marquette fan board when they realized they weren't getting him.

 

[slidde01]

Realistic. Nicely done.

If CMP wants to elevate his program then he will have to do better.

New HCs at iu and Illinois plus the rising programs at Minnesota and Northwestern are only going to increase Painter's challenges.

He needs a top notch recruiting assistant coach.

Shut up already.

 

[Ben Shadeland]

Aside from Epperson, about whom I have no opinion, the main thing we need is what someone said above--more NCAA Tournament success. We've been going head-to-head with MSU in recruiting for a while now. There are some striking similarities in the programs' identities (blue collar attitudes, toughness, emphasis on D, etc.).

To beat them in recruiting, we need to beat them in head-to-head battles and in NCAA Tourney success. The first is happening--resoundingly, I might add. The second can happen this weekend. We need to beat ISU.

Results are difficult to argue. If Painter can say, "Look, we whipped their butts on the court, and we had more success than them in March," there's no rebuttal for MSU. Sure, they can point to past success, but we're a culture of NOW (for better or worse).

Now is the time to prove we're better. Then the JJJs will choose us.

Just my two cents.

 

[tjreese]

Aside from Epperson, about whom I have no opinion, the main thing we need is what someone said above--more NCAA Tournament success. We've been going head-to-head with MSU in recruiting for a while now. There are some striking similarities in the programs' identities (blue collar attitudes, toughness, emphasis on D, etc.).

To beat them in recruiting, we need to beat them in head-to-head battles and in NCAA Tourney success. The first is happening--resoundingly, I might add. The second can happen this weekend. We need to beat ISU.

Results are difficult to argue. If Painter can say, "Look, we whipped their butts on the court, and we had more success than them in March," there's no rebuttal for MSU. Sure, they can point to past success, but we're a culture of NOW (for better or worse).

Now is the time to prove we're better. Then the JJJs will choose us.

Just my two cents.

I'm trying to recall with all the talent MSU has how many POY awards they had? Maybe Purdue is the place to let talent shine? I can agree with much you said, but it is a chicken and egg type of thing...to a degree. They have more talent day in and day out and so you have to have less talent to beat the more talent to say... see!

I often wonder if Izzo had NOT got the Flintstones...where that program would be in comparison to Purdue?

 

[Ben Shadeland]

I'm trying to recall with all the talent MSU has how many POY awards they had? Maybe Purdue is the place to let talent shine? I can agree with much you said, but it is a chicken and egg type of thing...to a degree. They have more talent day in and day out and so you have to have less talent to beat the more talent to say... see!

I often wonder if Izzo had NOT got the Flintstones...where that program would be in comparison to Purdue?

I absolutely agree with the chicken-and-egg analogy. I've thought about it a lot and come to the conclusion it can happen either way. Often, the recruiter sells some talented kids on a dream, and they make it come true, and that success begets more success. Or, conversely, the coach makes a lot out of a little, and the better recruits come.

I think a combination is what's happening at Purdue. Painter's selling what we're becoming, and we're having more success. The recruiting seems to be improving, but at a very gradual rate. Biggie was obviously a big leap, but it's not like we became a blue blood with one recruit. Still, it showed that we can attract and nurture high-end talent.

I want us to win tonight and improve our recruiting odds for the next couple of years.

 

[StickPurdue]

The Tillman pregnant girlfriend story is bs. That was started by some Marquette fan board when they realized they weren't getting him.

Well... he did have a pregnant girlfriend. They have a daughter. She has several pictures of her in MSU gear even as early as 2015. She also posted in 2016 that she was excited to call East Lansing home again and she was wearing an MSU shirt.

 

[SDBoiler1]

The Tillman pregnant girlfriend story is bs. That was started by some Marquette fan board when they realized they weren't getting him.

Not true. He went to one of MSU's last home games and had his GF and a young child him. They showed them on TV.

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

I'm trying to recall with all the talent MSU has how many POY awards they had? Maybe Purdue is the place to let talent shine? I can agree with much you said, but it is a chicken and egg type of thing...to a degree. They have more talent day in and day out and so you have to have less talent to beat the more talent to say... see!

I often wonder if Izzo had NOT got the Flintstones...where that program would be in comparison to Purdue?

BTPOY (since 1985): Cleeves, Peterson, Lucas, Green, and Valentine under Izzo. Respert and Skiles under Heathcoate.

 

[ChoiceBeef]

Not true. He went to one of MSU's last home games and had his GF and a young child him. They showed them on TV.

My apologies. I remember reading it on a Marquette blog and someone from MSU saying it was false.

 

[SDBoiler1]

Had we landed Jackson, we would not have gotten Wheeler. Very similar type player although I think Jackson is an inch or so taller. Jackson would have been nice, but Wheeler is a very serviceable replacement.

The biggest miss was on Manley. He was exactly what Purdue needed in the 2017 class. Tillman and Williams were unfortunate misses as well but I don't think we had a shot at either. Slick Rick went all in on Williams and Tillman had a pregnant girlfriend going to MSU. Manley was all on board for us until Roy swooped in. Manley would have been a star in Purdue's system. He will be just another guy and heavily recruited over at UNC, but I don't blame him. If Manley gets a shot and can stay healthy, he will shine. He seems like a very good kid too.

Wheeler and Eastern were very good pickups. They will go great playing alongside Carsen. Now we just need some size upfront. Haarms is big, but he isn't physical. Ondigo seems to be a physical and athletic big that can alter shots. Ondigo would be the perfect final piece and give Painter easily a top 20 class. Very solid after all of the early misses. I am not crazy about the Ewing pick, but it tells me Painter was concerned about depth next year. He has two years left so a miss on him isn't overly devastating. I like the addition of Sasha. He won't start or see the floor for atleast 2 years and even then it will likely be off the bench. But if he puts the work in, he could have a significant roll by the time he is a junior. Dan Dakich talked him up and said he comes from a great family. Sasha is the definition of a project, but there is always room for shooters willing to put the work on the defensive end.

Not true. JJJ is a much better overall player right now than Wheeler is. Wheeler could develop, but JJJ is going to be a stud at MSU almost right away. He's bigger and more skilled - it's just a fact. Wheeler is more like Vince Edwards, but maybe a bit more athletic.

Another poster who commented about Sterling Manley was correct, too. He would have been a great pick-up for Painter.

 

[*4purdue*]

BTPOY (since 1985): Cleeves, Peterson, Lucas, Green, and Valentine under Izzo. Respert and Skiles under Heathcoate.

Wasn't Steve Smith also BTPOY under Heathcoate

 

[JohnnyDoeBoiler]

Ondigo's a project?? We need someone to play the backup 5 about 8 months from now...

Haarms and Ewing and Taylor...plethora of options that bring different things to the floor.

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

Wasn't Steve Smith also BTPOY under Heathcoate

Not that I've seen, 4. He was third team All-American in '90 with Steve Scheffler of Purdue. Scheffler was BTPOY. His senior year, he was second team all All-American with Jim Jackson of Ohio State. Jackson was BTPOY. Tough luck there. Similarly in the NBA....really good player but somewhat overlooked a lot, especially in Portland.

 

[tjreese]

BTPOY (since 1985): Cleeves, Peterson, Lucas, Green, and Valentine under Izzo. Respert and Skiles under Heathcoate.

my typo...meant some national POY awards

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

my typo...meant some national POY awards

Respert (NABC, Sporting News), Green (NABC), and Valentine (AP, NABC).

 

[tjreese]

Respert (NABC, Sporting News), Green (NABC), and Valentine (AP, NABC).

WOW, thought maybe green. How did msu lose over the years with so much talent? Does he know Crean...nevermind...