For Purdue, Big Ten rivalries are nothing personal
The term "hate" gets thrown around a lot regarding sports rivalries, probably a bit too casually considering the gravity of the word.
In reality, it's very often the furthest thing from the truth.
Competitive animosity, perhaps, but nothing personal.
That's especially true nowadays as players from all over are more connected than ever, not just by summer basketball and the wide-ranging all-star circuit, but by technology. Often, these players' rivaIs are also their friends, sometimes their best friends.
Saturday at Indiana, Isaiah Thompson will play his first college game against Armaan Franklin.
"He was my best friend in high school and he still is to this day," Purdue's freshman guard said of IU's freshman guard.
Eric Hunter will play his third against Rob Phinisee, with whom he became friends in high school through the summer circuit and recruiting visits, but more so their experience together as Indiana All-Stars following their senior years.
"I don't think people realize it's not like that," Hunter said, regarding rivalry hatred. "Rob and I will interact on Twitter, and Purdue fans will comment or IU fans will comment, like, 'What's this?'
"You think, 'No, he's my dude. We were friends before IU-Purdue.'"
During, however, that's where the difference between competition and disdain lies.
Hunter's used to it by now. Phinisee's not his only dude in the Big Ten.
In high school, during the summers, he and Aaron Henry — now of Michigan State — were the next best thing to attached. They played for the same grassroots program. They spent countless hours together driving to and from out-of-town tournaments, just them and parents in their cars, driving from Indy to Milwaukee, Atlanta or wherever.
Last year, when Purdue faced the Spartans, Hunter and Henry wound up guarding one another for a few minutes. Neither did much of anything during that time, Hunter remembers. What he also remembers is that it was "weird."
This year, Hunter says, while everything went Purdue's way in its lone regular season meeting with the Spartans, he didn't think about his friend in green.
"Not 'til after the game," Hunter said. "You get so locked in on stuff, stuff with yourself, stuff with your teammates and just your team and you can't get sidetracked, so it's not something you really think about in the heat of the moment."
That's where college is different.
"At this level, you've got to put it aside," Hunter said, "because you've got to beat those guys.
"It's really about bragging rights when we're all home for the summer together."
Last year, when Phinisee battled a concussion during his freshman season, Hunter reached out to check on him.
Thompson said he and Franklin have been text-messaging one another all week.
Under a different set of circumstances, Franklin would be a freshman at Purdue alongside Thompson, who felt good about the Boilermakers' chances. Franklin chose Indiana instead.
"That wasn't going to change our relationship," Thompson said. "I'm always going to be there for him and he's always going to be there for me. That relationship will never change."
Saturday, though, the relationship doesn't change, but context does, for a few hours anyway.
"We're excited to see each other," Thompson said, "but obviously we're not going to be friends tomorrow."
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