Seth Davis Picks JJ, Painter For Top Awards

The Boiling Point: Sports Illustrated’s Seth Davis picked Purdue’s JaJuan Johnson and Matt Painter for Big Ten Player of the Year and Coach of the Year.

It’s starting to become a theme for Purdue senior JaJuan Johnson and coach Matt Painter. The two have become heavy favorites for the league’s top player and coach award with the national pundits.

On Monday, Sports Illustrated’s Seth Davis tabbed both for Player and Coach of the Year.

Here’s what he had to say about Johnson.

"It was not easy choosing between Johnson and Jared Sullinger. The Ohio State center staked a lead early on, but Johnson has been the better player down the stretch. In Big Ten games, Johnson averaged 20.7 points to Sullinger’s 16.8, although Sullinger did average 1.2 more rebounds. Johnson also led the league in blocks (2.5), was third in free-throw percentage (87.6) and tied for 12th in steals (0.94). Plus, while Sullinger was Ohio State’s most talented player, he did not have to be his team’s leader. Johnson did."

And Painter.

"Very few programs could withstand an injury to a player like Robbie Hummel and still be the runner-up behind the country’s No. 1 team. The Boilermakers had a great year because Painter put a culture in place that’s built around defense and toughness. He has also done a terrific job developing Johnson and E’Twaun Moore over the last four years."

The awards will be announced at 7 EST tonight on the Big Ten Network.