Big Ten Basketball: 10 key storylines to watch for 2023 offseason

Purdue Boilermakers center Zach Edey (15) celebrates as he is announced the player of the tournament after winning the Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship game against the Penn State Nittany Lions, Sunday, March 12, 2023, at United Center in Chicago. Purdue won 67-65.Pupsu031223 Am22423 /

2 of 11

Big Ten Basketball Purdue Boilermakers center Zach Edey David Banks-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Fate of Zach Edey and Purdue Boilermakers

Although it’s not official, odds are great that the 2022-23 National Player of the Year will be Zach Edey. He finished the season with 22.3 ppg and 12.9 rpg, both of which led Big Ten Basketball. The Big Ten Player of the Year had back-to-back 30+ point games to win the conference tournament, while also going for 21 points and 15 rebounds in the loss to Fairleigh Dickinson.

Despite how mediocre the Big Ten was overall, Purdue, led by Edey, was the brightspot. They got the 1 seed and won the PK85 Legacy bracket, which included dominant wins over Duke and Gonzaga. They also got some good contributions from freshmen guards, Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer.

Ultimately, it’s going to come down to what the 7’4 giant opts to do. Right now, the projected NBA Draft range for Edey is between 45-60+. His game doesn’t translate greatly to the next level for obvious reasons since the NBA is much more spread out. But the stock for the star big man may not go higher and when you’re that size, there’s a desire to start getting paid since you don’t have too many years of wear and tear on your body.

If Purdue has great NIL (reportedly doesn’t), they could convince Edey to come back for his senior season. If that happens, they have a case for being the preseason No. 1 team in the country. They’d also be the clear team to beat in Big Ten Basketball once again. But if he goes, Boilermakers will take a step back in the conference.

Home/Big Ten