Men’s Basketball Media Day Notes

The Boiling Point: Note’s from assorted media at yesterday’s Purdue men’s basketball media day.

Some notes and quotes from the various media at yesterday’s Purdue basketball media day. Among the included notes: Hummel as No. 1 scorer, potential redshirts, Kelsey Barlow and more.

Hummel a No. 1 scorer?
Jeff Washburn of the Lafayette Journal and Courier talked to Robbie Hummel about being, for the first time in his career, the go-to guy on the offensive end.

"“When I played with Scott Martin in high school (at Valparaiso), I deferred to him a little bit,” Hummel said Monday. “Being here at Purdue, I played with E’Twaun (Moore), who was a 2,000-point scorer, and with JaJuan (Johnson), who was a first-team All-American."

"“It wasn’t like I was deferring to people who couldn’t get the job done. I wasn’t passing up shots. I wasn’t not playing within the offense. There were just so many opportunities for guys who can make plays. We also were good at sharing the basketball. I’m fine with (being more aggressive). It’s something I can really grasp. I can do a good job with that and still make other people better. If I need to score, I will.”"

Washburn also spoke to coach Matt Painter, who obviously has no problem expecting Hummel to lead the team in scoring. Hummel topped the team with 24 points in Sunday’s scrimmage.

"“If you look at their numbers, adding Rob and losing JaJuan is a wash,” Painter said. “I want Rob to take more shots and play more off his shot fake and play more in the mid-post. We need to find ways to get the ball in his hands.”"

Lewis Jackson Update

Lewis Jackson has missed some practice already this season, including Sunday’s scrimmage, and was quoted by various media sources as saying he’s at 60-65% right now. Painter isn’t concerned, however:

"“He hurt his foot and why he’s out is he sprained his ankle,” Painter said. “He’s been able to push through some things and we took him out of some of the workouts in the fall. I’m not concerned with it as much. You just don’t want it to nag the whole year. It might be one of those things where it does nag him the rest of the year, with that being said, that’s kind of par for the course. It’s not enough to keep him out.“Lew’s a competitor. He’s a tough kid. When you have those kind of characteristics, I normally don’t worry about you.”"

John Hart Update
John Hart should be cleared to practice no later than Nov. 15, according to team doctors. Hart has endured chronic foot problems since breaking his foot, then having surgery in the spring and summer.

"“That’s where they gauged it about two months ago,” Painter said. “He will see the doctor Thursday, so hopefully, we will have a better understanding of what is going on then.”"

 Freshman to redshirt?
Painter discussed the possibility of redshirting either Jacob Lawson or Donnie Hale, Purdue’s two freshman. Because I know someone will ask, this would only impact the scholarship grid in 2015 for one season.

"“They both can help us from the sense that they have athleticism, and they give us that on our front line,” Painter said. “They are going to have to get by some people to help us. A lot of people have to keep in perspective that Donnie was going to come the year before when we thought we would lose one of three guys to the NBA Draft after their junior year. We’re trying to get figured out what is best for them and what is best for us. There are only so many minutes at that spot unless we play incredibly small.”"