Ryan Cline was asked on Monday whether he was "OK," not just in the aftermath of his summertime arrest and subsequent suspension but also that the issues in play weren't a reflection of a larger problem.
"Right now I really couldn't be better," Cline said. "The first couple days were pretty tough, disappointed in myself, disappointed for my family, my overall community, but I feel like I've really grown as a young man from this. Honestly, right now I feel like I'm at the high point of my life.
"It's obviously been a pretty big learning experience for me. It was a hard first couple days, a pretty disappointing feeling, but it's something where I've kept telling myself that this could be the best thing to ever happen to me, learning from my mistakes. It could be really big for me."
Cline spoke in apologetic tones Monday, speaking publicly for the first time since he was suspended for the first six competitions of the season after facing marijuana possession charges stemming from an incident in Hamilton County in which he was found unresponsive in his car.
"I was sorry to my team and the whole Purdue community," he said. "I let my team and my school down. But it's something I've learned from and really grown from."
Teammate, team co-captain and long-time friend P.J. Thompson said he's seen a more mature Cline of late.
"He was really disappointed," Thompson said. "He's a good kid, man. I've known him for a while, and he really is a good kid. He just made a bad mistake. He called us all in. He apologized. He was emotional. That just meant he cared and he wanted us to hear it and not just read about it."
Matt Painter originally issued a three-game suspension - Purdue's two exhibitions plus the season opener vs. McNeese State - but soon after added three more games. After sitting out against Villanova, Georgia State and Utah State in Cancun, Cline debuted for the season against Auburn in Mexico.
Cline was asked Monday if he knew up front the three-game suspension might increase.
"It was kind of like a trust thing," he said. "I betrayed a lot of peoples' trust. It's something I have to earn back."
That road starts now.
"I'm a firm believer that everybody makes mistakes, but (what's important) is what you do after them, whether you keep making them or stop them right then," Thompson said. "I feel like Ryan's going to stop them right then, and I don't think he's going to get in any more trouble."
But this isn't the end of this, as Cline well knows.
The ugly details have become very public, easy fodder for opposing crowds when Purdue plays on the road. He's aware.
"That stuff kind of fuels the fire for me," Cline said. "The crowd can say whatever they want to say. I know they try to get in peoples' heads, but that stuff is just fuel for me. It doesn't get to me. I'm going to hear it, my parents are going to hear it, but it's just something where you have to say, 'Who cares?'"
Like Thompson said, Cline's response now comes to the forefront. Since the incident, he says he's limited "distractions" - "it's just school, my close friends and all basketball," he said - and channeled more of himself into basketball.
He intends for this to be the end of it, and hopes for the start of something better.
"I was in a bad place," Cline said. "Right now, I couldn't be better."
Membership Information: Sign up for GoldandBlack.com now | Why join? | Questions?
Copyright, Boilers, Inc. 2016. All Rights Reserved. Reproducing or using editorial or graphical content, in whole or in part, without permission, is strictly prohibited.
