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There's been a lot of talk this week about Purdue's reported offer to 2013 point guard Cornelius Elder of Tennessee, a blue-chip football recruit whose reported offer from the Boilermakers would be his first high-major opportunity for hoops.

College coaches obviously can't discuss unsigned recruits, but when Matt Painter was asked Thursday morning in generalities about what he'd be interested in for a potential spring signee.

"I'm interested in a decision-maker, someone who makes good decisions," Painter said. "A guard, a skilled player, a good decision-maker, a tough guy, a guy who likes basketball who's passionate and a leader.

"If you guys have any suggestions, I'm all for it."

The Twitter Drama of the Week involved signee Bryson Scott and a tweet that seemed to be expressing displeasure in Purdue offering another guard.

Rather than rehashing, we'll just paste the response we put on the message boards last week about that topic, which we'd consider a non-issue.

Here it is:

Purdue has looked for point guards/playmakers for the spring and I think this season has underscored the importance of them. Kelsey Barlow left this team with a void it's not been able to fill. Goes back to the basic concept that you can never have enough good guards who you can trust and Painter's always been determined to have at least two good points on the roster, as much because of what he asks of them defensively and the physical toll it can take.

Elder is smallish scoring point, but is supposed to be a very tough kid and competitor, per college coaches who've seen him. A typical Purdue sort of player.

Bryson Scott will be fine, no matter what Twitter might suggest (ah, Twitter). He can take solace in knowing that no matter how many guards Purdue has, he may be the best. The player he is right now is a player Purdue will want on the floor and will want the ball in his hands, starting next season. If Purdue is recruiting over Bryson Scott, they'd have to be recruiting lottery picks.

People get hung up on position. "But this guy's a point guard and that guy's not."

Bryson Scott is a point guard first and foremost, because Purdue will want the ball in his hands, and he will be a terror guarding the position. It's where he matches up best and where his mentality at both ends of the floor is best suited. That is his most natural position, because of the command he has on games. But he can slide over and play anywhere else at times.

And Purdue spreads the wealth in terms of ball-handling and decision-making. E'Twaun Moore wasn't a point guard, per se, but look how much he had the ball in his hands, not just to score but to make plays for others. The exact same can be said for Terone Johnson.

People get too hung up on positions.

Back to Scott: You have to understand the individual. This is the most motivated high school basketball player I've ever covered, for better and worse. He will look for slight in anything if it means he can use it as a motivation.

Hell, if I'm Purdue, for his sake, I'd consider signing as many other guards as possible. Might not be a bad thing.

That last remark was kind of sarcasm. (BN)

To the football recruiting class, if we didn't make this clear enough yesterday, we expect linebacker Sam Lebbie to be part of Purdue's class. Lebbie's intention since he visited for the IU game was to come to Purdue, academics permitting.

He didn't make it academically to enroll mid-year, but told us yesterday that he has qualified now to enroll in the fall and we'd expect him to do so. We do not know yet about teammate Ra'Zahn Howard, the defensive tackle. That one could drag out.

With Lebbie in the fold, here is where things stand: Not counting Howard as being committed - for argument's sake pending resolution - Purdue has 19 verbal commitments, with one of them, Garrett Hudson, being a potential deferred offer.

We expect Purdue to add cornerback Da'Wan Hunte, but he doesn't want to announce until signing day.

Purdue will host running backs Dalyn Dawkins and Keith Byars Jr. this weekend.

Dawkins is a priority and we'd expect Purdue to have a great shot at Dawkins, the Louisville Trinity star who's down to the Boilermakers, Colorado State and Western Kentucky.

He tweeted this past weekend that he'll make his decision either Sunday or Monday.

We think - think - that if Purdue gets Dawkins and Hunte, it will be done for the 2013 class, barring any fluctuations on the commitment list. We would not expect any, but you never do. (BN)

On Byars II, the running back, is an interesting case, and we really don't know what Purdue has in mind for him as it brings him in this weekend for an official visit.

Byars II said he was recruited heavily out of Boca Raton High School last year, but went unsigned and spent this past season at Milford Academy, a prep school in New York.

"I had some pretty big offers out of high school," Byars II said. "I was indecisive about choosing a school and I fell through the cracks. I went to prep school for another year of exposure and also to bring my grades up higher."

Purdue first made contact again about three weeks ago.

"Recruiting was at a standstill for me until I heard from Purdue," Byars II said. "… Really they haven't said too much. I'm going to take this visit this week and go from there."

The running back said he's "definitely" hoping things work out with Purdue.

What that means, we don't know. Considering Purdue is the only school involved, this would seem to like a potential deferred-offer or invited walk-on situation, unless Purdue is willing to take four running backs in this class. If Purdue gets Dawkins, that'll be three when you factor in David Yancey and Keyante Green.

Darrell Hazell probably has connections to Byars' father, former Ohio State great Keith Byars. So there's a connection. (BN)

A small basketball recruiting note: Ohio 2014 wing Dakota Mathias, who visited Purdue for its win over Penn State Jan. 13 was just offered by West Virginia, whose coach, Bob Huggins, traveled to see him immediately following the Mountaineers' loss at Purdue Jan. 19.

Painter is expected to see Mathias this upcoming weekend. Here's a YouTube video with some highlights: link (BN)

Robbie Hummel, who's playing professionally in Spain, will return to Mackey Arena for his banner-raising ceremony for the Feb. 9 Michigan State game.

That is all the game where Purdue is expected to introduce Hazell and his not-yet-complete coaching staff. (staff)

Garrett Hudson on fellow Purdue commit Austin Logan, a safety who he played against in Tallahassee: "He is very versatile; very fast. He blew past me a couple times when we played. But I got him good my junior year and then he got me back this past year. So it's going to be fun to hang out with him; he's a good player." (BN)

Join us tomorrow at 2 p.m. for 'Gold and Black LIVE,' our not-yet-award-winning weekly web show.

Tomorrow's show will be largely dedicated to remembering Bob King, with appearances from Morgan Burke, Ralph Taylor, Bruce Parkinson and George Faerber. For the first segment, we'll talk about Purdue's current basketball team.

Show time is 2 p.m. If you can't join us then, a replay will be posted around dinnertime. (staff)

Also, for those of who simply can't get enough of the soothing sound of Kyle Charters' voice, be sure to tune in Monday morning at 10 a.m. for our new feature, 'Gold and Black Radio.'

To reach our show page, click here. From there, you can listen to the new show on Monday morning, or listen back to previous shows.

Also, notice that the 15-minute show is downloadable to your iTunes, so you can listen on the go. (staff)

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