More: Purdue 2016-17 primer | Point guards aim to provide stability ($)

Purdue stands to benefit this season from more flexibility in its lineups than it did last year.

An unexpected piece of that puzzle: Carsen Edwards.

The freshman was recruited to play point guard. Instead, he'll play a shooting guard role, at least initially in his college career.

In theory, it could allow the Boilermakers to play with both its guards possessing point guard skills, potentially of benefit for a team that may want to play faster than it did a year ago and certainly a team that could use all the help it can get against pressuring defenses.

"Having two guys out there who can make plays, bring the ball up, it just makes things easier," said fifth-year senior newcomer Spike Albrecht, who'll contribute at point guard. "But Carsen also brings a different element to our team. He's just a bucket-getter. He can go out there and score the ball in a way very few guys can. He gives us that versatility offensively, and on defense, he's strong enough to guard bigger guys, too."

Edwards could potentially offer Purdue a different sort of scoring threat than it otherwise has, with his ability to get to the basket and push the ball in transition, a style that stands in stark contrast to his fellow 2-guards, Dakota Mathias and Ryan Cline.

Coach Matt Painter has said that he thinks Edwards — he was Purdue's second-leading scorer in Spain — can provide an "instant offense" sort of spark coming off the bench, if he does in fact wind up coming off the bench.

Teammates believe he's well-equipped.

"I knew he was good coming in, but I'm not going to lie: I didn't know he was this good," Thompson said. "That's a compliment to him, because I knew he was good. He brings a different dynamic to us. His speed and the way he can score, you don't see that a lot, especially from a freshman this early. It usually takes them some time to get accustomed to college basketball.

"He's a blur. He can get it and go. He can fill it up so quick. I think we're going to need that. We're smaller this year, but I think we can play faster."

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