Braden Smith gets some love.
Every season the Big Ten conference coaches get together and talk to the media ahead of the upcoming basketball season. It’s a time full of hope, optimism, and belief that every team can have a great offseason that really set them up for success this season. Part of this meeting though is that the media releases their conference awards. They are pre-season so you have to take them with a grain of salt, but Braden Smith got lots of love.
#B1GMBBall Preseason Awards
https://t.co/bqi0bLurVh pic.twitter.com/QjT80FksEA
— Big Ten Men’s Basketball (@B1GMBBall) October 1, 2024
Ten players total were named to the pre-season all conference team and only one of them was unanimous. That man was Braden Smith. That makes sense when you also see that Braden Smith was named the conference’s player of the year. Here’s the release from the Big Ten:
Smith is coming off a record-breaking season for the Boilermakers, setting school and Big Ten records with 292 assists, while leading the Boilermakers to their first NCAA championship game appearance since 1969. Smith was the only player in the country to average at least 12.0 points, 7.5 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game and became just the second player in NCAA history to amass at least 450 points, 275 assists and 225 rebounds in a season.
Oumar Ballo, R-Sr.+, C, Indiana
Payton Sandfort, Sr., F, Iowa
Dawson Garcia, Sr., F, Minnesota
Brooks Barnhizer, Sr., G, Northwestern
Bruce Thornton, Jr., G, Ohio State
Jackson Shelstad, So., G, Oregon
Ace Baldwin Jr., Sr+, G, Penn State
BRADEN SMITH, Jr., G, Purdue*
Dylan Harper, Fr., G, Rutgers
Great Osobor, Sr., F, Washington
*means unanimous selection
Braden Smith is poised to have another huge year for the Boilermakers fresh off leading them to the National Title game last year. It’s not just the Big Ten media that is showing him some love either. The folks over at Sleepers Media listed Braden as their number one player in the conference. They’ve been counting down the top players all offseason.
#1 PURDUE G BRADEN SMITH! Let’s be real, we all knew this was coming. Join @gwizzy12 and @BoilersInStands (@kraigbowers34 and @joejacksonCBB) to break down the best player in the conference!
LINK: https://t.co/o6lJ5FIiJM— Sleepers Media (@SleepersMedia) September 26, 2024
If you’ve followed Smith’s career you’ll know he’s not one to shrink from a challenge. Most colleges didn’t think he was big enough, skilled enough, or athletic enough to be a high major player. Then, he worked his ass off to transform who he was as a player and Matt Painter saw that desire and believed he was a special player. Painter was right and Purdue has reaped benefit after benefit as a result.
Purdue plays their first game of the season 25 days from today.