Notes and whatnot, with stories to follow, from Purdue's biggest and best team camp session on Thursday at Mackey Arena and surrounding facilities.
Understand that there is just one of me, and there were a lot of players there today, so I could only see so much.
JADEN IVEY IS PRETTY GOOD
It is a bit different seeing players with their high school teams as opposed to their grassroots teams, because in the school settings, these guys are more likely to be their team's absolute centerpiece, and that's certainly the case with Purdue commitment Jaden Ivey for Mishawaka Marian.
He was a bit up and down shooting the ball, based in part on what I heard beyond what I saw, but he was dominant in the final game of the day, which I watched start to finish, in a rout of North Central, and prior to that, he was fantastic in a good win over Greensburg, turning the game on its side with a dominant run of scoring of all kinds.
Same stuff: He can really shoot the ball, conventional mechanics be damned, but he is also so good at getting into the lane, eluding or absorbing — or both — contact and scoring at the basket.
JR KONIECZNY IS GONNA BE IN OFFER CONVERSATION
Purdue's recruited South Bend St. Joseph's JR Konieczny to this point, but I don't know if it's recruited him, per se. Now, he might be moving toward that Luke Goode/Pierre Brooks sort of strata where Purdue might start following him like a guy who could be next up for an offer as it goes into the summer.
That's not to say Purdue will offer — again, scholarship restrictions — but it may start recruiting him like it's entertaining the thought seriously, if that makes sense.
Konieczny is all of 6-foot-7, a terrific shooter who can shoot on the move, off the catch, off the dribble, whatever, but also can score off the bounce, getting to the basket, and is tougher and more physical than you'd expect from a wiry body type like his.
He'll be a multi-positional guy long-term and as his body develops, that versatility might be especially intriguing.
Creighton and Butler have recently offered, marking the beginning of his recruiting going beyond the mid-major level.
Also, both his parents apparently went to Purdue, he said today.
ABOUT TREY KAUFMAN
The newly offered Purdue 2021 target backed it up in West Lafayette, as he was really good, really productive and efficient and whatnot. In the morning, he got the best of a head-to-head matchup with Jalen Washington, who's an elite 2022 prospect, and throughout the day, in the games we saw, he was good.
People are going to compare him to Trayce Jackson-Davis, because he's an in-state kid and he kinda sorta looks like Jackson-Davis, but outside of his rebounding acumen and strong hands, it's not a great comparison.
The best comparison imaginable, to me, is a Purdue-specific one, because he and Vincent Edwards are so alike it's uncanny, down to the smallest details, like their mannerisms and gaits.
Kaufman can play around the basket for sure. He's a good post player, good in traffic and a good rebounder, but what defines him to me is the combination of that and how good he is away from the basket, being able to handle the ball and pass and shoot. Silver Creek often used him to bring the ball up the floor, because he does have guard skills for being that size, just like Edwards. Jackson-Davis does not possess anything remotely resembling such skills. He's a 10-feet-and-in guy, and a markedly better, more explosive athlete than Kaufman at the same stage.
Anyway, Kaufman debuted in the top 75 of Rivals.com's 2021 rankings. I could see him being a top-50 sort of prospect before long, in part because his body is going to change for the better.
JALEN WASHINGTON WAS THE MOST OBVIOUS EARLY OFFER EVER
Look, I don't know if Jalen Washington had a great day today from a playing perspective. He was up and down, and in the morning game against Kaufman he missed a bunch of good looks.
It doesn't matter. He is such an awesome prospect that the promise alone is going to get him most every offer he could want. He has every physical tool, versatility and skill, and Purdue is going to dig in now for a recruiting war, because he will be one of the best prospects nationally in his class.
THE NEW JUNE
Steve Lutz wasn't at team camp, because he's already in Charlottesville for NBA Camp, which is now open to college coaches as part of the new and exciting June evaluation for the wholesomeness of high school basketball community-based events.
Late in the afternoon, Matt Painter and Micah Shrewsberry left to join him in Virginia, where 2021 targets Max Christie and Chet Holmgren are among those playing, and Ben Carlson would have been had he not gotten hurt. Concussion, I believe.
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