Derek Willis No Long Committed To Purdue (UPDATE)

The Boiling Point: Big-time 2013 basketball recruit Derek Willis has pulled his verbal commitment from Purdue.

According to an early evening tweet from ESPN’s senior basketball recruiting analyst Dave Telep, big-time 2013 Purdue verbal commitment Derek Willis is no longer pledged to Purdue coach Matt Painter.

"@DaveTelep: “Derek Willis is de-committed from Purdue. No gray area, call’s been made. He’s now longer committed to Purdue.”"

Derek’s Father, Del, told Telep:

"“It’s not that he didn’t like Purdue, he just wanted to see some of his other options,” Del Willis said. “He wanted to make sure it was the right fit. Most of the time, you don’t marry the first girl you date. He didn’t have anything to compare it too. “So, Derek just wanted to make sure it was the right place for him.”"

Not sure if Del knows this, but Matt Painter has never recruited a player when they de-commit, usually pulling the scholarship completely. Hopefully they aren’t banking on one still being available.

There were conflicting reports late in the week that Willis had pulled his verbal, but Derek’s father, Del, said nothing was official. The word is Derek wants to go through the recruiting process with Kentucky and Louisville. He didn’t get that opportunity before pledging to Purdue because the Boilers were his first offer and he blew up on the AAU circuit just recently.

We will continue to update this situation as more information becomes available.