Eric Hunter's prompt return a welcomed sight for Purdue
Purdue came one big step closer to being whole this week when Eric Hunter returned from a six-to-eight-week injury in just four.
Hunter missed most of the preseason and Purdue's first four games after sustaining a compression fracture in his tibia during a Nov. 9 scrimmage. He did not require surgery.
"I just took my rehab really seriously and didn't try to rush it, even though it seems like it because I came back in half the time," Hunter said, crediting trainer Chad Young. "But we definitely didn't rush it and I trusted him to let me go."
Hunter came off the bench for the Boilermakers in their loss at Miami in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge Tuesday night and scored 11 points in 27 turnover-free minutes. Only Sasha Stefanovic played more.
"I missed it a lot," Hunter said. "I didn't really realize how much I missed it until I got out there. It was really fun just to be out there again."
With Hunter back, Purdue now has its top perimeter scorer from a season ago and its most proven individual defender back.
And flexibility.
"It gives you a lot of different looks," Coach Matt Painter said.
Hunter was largely Purdue's primary ball-handler last season and was due to be this season, a role Isaiah Thompson has carried through the early part of this season.
Hunter's return can put Thompson back in a situation where he alternates more between both backcourt positions, and will add another three-point shooter to Purdue's arsenal, with lineups that could now also include a combo of Hunter, Stefanovic and Brandon Newman, too.
Painter also mentioned the possibility of lineups that include Hunter, Thompson and Ethan Morton, which would amount to having three point guards on the floor at once.
"And when Jaden Ivey comes back, that'll give us a lot of different looks," Painter said, "but you're still trying to figure things out, and that's what you want as a coach. But people always think you figure it out as a coach when it's production that figures it out or lack thereof.
"You want the answers to come to you, but when you're inconsistent, it's hard to get answers."
Ivey has been sidelined since the season opener with a foot issue. As of the start of this week, he still hadn't practiced, though it's been hoped a mid-December return would happen.
Hunter is an important player at both ends of the floor, but also one of Purdue's presumed leaders this season.
"We feed off Eric's energy," classmate Trevion Williams said. "He's our energy guy."
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