Five Things: Purdue's off-season

More: Purdue's transfer portal picture

Following Friday night's disappointing conclusion to the 2021-2022 season, Purdue's due for a few weeks of reflection before turning all eyes toward next season, albeit with the potential of having just a skeleton crew of a roster on campus.

Here are a couple of things to be mindful of heading into the off-season. Not really questions, not really keys, but just things.

Stuff, if you will.

This was a really difficult season for Brandon Newman, the sophomore whose basketball reality changed real hard real fast, from starting most of last season and looking at times like a budding standout to falling out of the rotation altogether most of this Big Ten season.

A lot of players — particularly those as ambitious as Newman — would have gone in the tank, and might have hit the portal first chance they got.

But the Penn State game in the Big Ten Tournament was one of the feel-good moments of the season around this team, and it seems as if he's intent to give it his best shot at Purdue again now.

Look, there are no guarantees of anything next season. This team will have a certain blank-slate element to it following the departure of every upperclassman on this past year's roster, plus the anticipated departure of the team's star, Jaden Ivey.

But one most only look back on Matt Painter's words about Newman's situation this season to illustrate the opportunity ahead.

Painter's repeatedly said that Newman's value comes out more over expanded minutes and as the finisher of plays offensively, i.e. a more featured piece. Conversely, Newman never seemed to find his way over the sparse minutes and merely complementary scoring opportunities that came with Jaden Ivey and Sasha Stefanovic carrying so many minutes and so much offensive responsibility.

Now, they're gone, and that's a ton of minutes and a ton of shots opening up. The role Stefanovic played as part of Purdue's offensive composition was more significant than a lot of people may even realize. The roles where Painter seems to believe Newman can thrive are sitting right there in front of him, for a team that will desperately need to establish (or recruit) some backcourt scoring next season and fill some shooting voids.

There are still areas where Newman must show progress, as he seems well aware, at both ends of the floor, but the possibility does exist that if he plays his cards right, his standing on this team could swing back in a positive direction just as quickly as it went the other way.

Painter has said over and over again he likes what he has on his team next season. Of course that's what he's going to say, but still, part of his stated enthusiasm was largely hidden from public view this season.

Trey Kaufman-Renn was a blue-chip recruit out of high school who was offered by North Carolina, among many others. He redshirted this season.

Brian Waddell was so impressive so early last summer that people were talking about him as a potential short-term starter and eventually a professional. He redshirted, too, as was the plan all along for him.

Now, things have changed some.

Waddell tore his ACL early this season, inevitably changing his trajectory to some extent.

Kaufman-Renn underwent surgery on his foot mid-season, but that was more a deal that since he was redshirting anyway, he may as well have just gotten it done. He's back to 100 percent.

Both players will have opportunities next season to make impacts, as Purdue's frontcourt may now have enough moving parts to accommodate the scoring punch the Boilermakers will hope Kaufman-Renn can provide, and Waddell could vie for some of those minutes freed up by Stefanovic's and Ivey's departures on the wing.

This summer — or in Waddell's case, whenever he is available for full-contact practice — will afford both players chances for "varsity" reps for the first time.

In a sometimes-lesser role, Caleb Furst had a really good freshman season.

Now, he'll have chances to do it at scale.

Purdue's got to find minutes for the sophomore-to-be big man, who can be one of the Boilermakers' better players in the short term.

That could — maybe should — mean him carrying minutes at both the 4 spot he played this season but also the backup "center" position, provided Zach Edey returns.

Very little would change for Furst at the 5, aside from defensive matchups maybe becoming more favorable closer to the basket as opposed to out on the perimeter, and there could be real advantages for him and Purdue alike, as his versatility could give the Boilermakers the sort of lineup malleability they haven't had when bigger centers have carried all the minutes.

Offensively, Furst's ability to stretch the floor from the 5 could be a new element for Purdue, something it hasn't really had since Matt Haarms, and he's a skilled enough passer where he could slot into some of the elbow-passing, dribble-handoff offense that Trevion Williams handled.

Defensively, Furst's mobility could conceivably allow Purdue to handle ball screens differently should it so choose.

Provided Edey comes back, the alternative to Furst at center would be freshman William Berg, or maybe even another true forward, like Kaufman-Renn.

Purdue has lots of assets in the frontcourt again, but also enough versatility to where things can take shape any number of ways.

As of this moment, the only point guard-category player slated to be on the roster is freshman Braden Smith.

Obviously that will change through transfer additions, but regardless this position turns over 100 percent now with Eric Hunter and Isaiah Thompson — and Ivey, who was Purdue's primary ball-handler anyway — gone.

Purdue didn't use Ethan Morton this season as a point guard but in a system that decentralizes ball-handling and decision-making duties, that could be an option, though Purdue does generally require quickness on the ball defensively. Purdue still picks up the ball 94 feet as its starting point defensively. That may be the biggest void at the position right now, more than anything at the offensive end.

It is essential that Purdue adds a quality player — and a good program fit — to its backcourt, and chances are, that Smith will have to play a role right away next season, too.

Purdue has to find some backcourt scoring. If Newman takes advantage of the opportunity to come, that would help, and incoming freshman Fletcher Loyer is an extremely gifted offensive player who'll need to acclimate to Big Ten physicality and Big Ten-level defense as quickly as he can.

Purdue's actually in a very similar position now that it was a couple seasons ago, when it needed then-upperclassmen Matt Haarms and Nojel Eastern to not only ascend to being two of the team's best players, but also its primary leaders.

That didn't go well.

Now, with every upperclassman gone, someone has to fill a considerable void.

Leadership seemed like sort of a mixed bag this season, and it's something Purdue would love to be a strength again sometime soon.

Now a junior, Mason Gillis — the guy with the most practical experience in the program — would seem like a player whose personality and playing style could lend themselves well to leadership, and Ethan Morton's always been a vocal, coach-on-the-floor type whose status on this team now elevates. Braden Smith will only be a freshman, but he's an alpha personality type with a real charisma about him.

Purdue needs to do a much better job next season talking on defense and valuing possessions, to name just a few things, and those are areas where whoever next year's leaders are, they need to set a tone for those around them.

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