SG Eric Hunter – Indianapolis, IN
Purdue was one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country last season. For the year, the team shot 42.0% from distance (2nd in the nation) while attempting 840 total threes (54th in the nation). However, three of the team’s top four shooters all departed this offseason due to graduation. While players like Carsen Edwards (40.6% on 239 3PA) and Ryan Cline (39.6% on 101 3PA) are returning, the Boilermakers will need more shooting. This is where incoming freshman Eric Hunter (No. 149) comes in.
One of the best 3-point shooters in the 2018 class, it is fair to call Eric Hunter a sniper. He has an extremely quick release and is able to get his shot off both while coming off of screens and in pull-up situations. A consistently great shooter in high school, Hunter shot 263-for-588 (44.7%) during his four-year varsity career. That certainly seems like a large enough sample size to prove a point.
An all-around extremely talented scorer, Hunter averaged 27.9 points per game as a senior this past year while leading Tindley High School to a successful season. Due to only being 6-foot-3, the hope is that Hunter can develop his playmaking skills to be more of a combo guard at the college level. For now, though, he is an extremely polished scorer with a knack for filling up the basket.
Next: Updated preseason Big Ten rankings
Although not the most highly rated class in program history, Purdue basketball is bringing in some excellent 2018 recruits. These players may not make up for the losses of four superb seniors but they should help right away and dictate the future of the program. As it stands now, the Boilermakers look to be in good shape moving forward.