Purdue MBB Summer Sports Primer: The Offense

In advance of one of the most promising seasons ever for Purdue basketball, the Boilermakers begin off-season practice on June 9.

A team that figures to again be one of the top offensive groups in college basketball will spend the next few months optimizing offensively, led by stars Braden Smith, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Fletcher Loyer.

Below, GoldandBlack.com?Express breaks down some relevant offensive layers Purdue may enhance or at least explore this summer.

SIZE + SIZE

Kaufman-Renn now moves back to forward, to flank true size at center, as Oscar Cluff arrives and Daniel Jacobsen returns. It was that lack of true interior size that held Purdue back more than anything last season. It probably helped Kaufman-Renn offensively some, but defensively, Purdue was really exposed, and defensive rebounding was an up-hill battle all season.

But to the offensive piece of it: Kaufman-Renn will now need to re-acclimate to playing next to true size again — as he did with Zach Edey and was readying to do last summer before Jacobsen got hurt — and that may put an onus on his three-point shooting, big-to-big passing and other such elements. There will be high-low dynamics to explore, matchups to create and new ways to use Kaufman-Renn to handle the ball and force and attack switches. Purdue used him heavily in inverted ball-screen stuff last season and it almost always worked, so Purdue does trust him with the ball in his hands.

Regardless, suddenly Purdue also figures to be a scary offensive rebounding team, which could add a deadly layer of productivity to an already well-stocked offensive arsenal. In the best case, putbacks and open threes contribute consistent scoring, draw consistent fouls and turn the possessions game heavily in the Boilermakers’ favor.

TWO POINT GUARDS

Heralded international recruit Omer Mayer‘s time to star at Purdue will come, but in the short term he figures to not just spell Smith at point guard, but also play alongside him, probably quite a bit.

Having two primary ball-handlers playing together will be an attractive thought for a Boilermaker staff that covets skill and decision-making at multiple positions on the floor, and Mayer’s size, catch-and shoot ability, pull-up game and ball-screen chops (as maybe a secondary action) could be appealing.

When the two play together — and keep in mind, such pairings could be capped by the need for Gicarri Harris or CJ Cox to be guarding the ball pretty much at all times — could really insulate Purdue from vulnerabilities against pressure and spark its fast-break element. And it’ll lock Harris and Cox into more comfortable and natural roles off the ball.

TRANSITION OFFENSE OFF DEFENSE

Good defense ends with a defensive rebound and good offense starts with a defensive rebound.

Personnel changes now could amount to a 180 on the defensive glass, as a glaring deficiency from last season — the numbers look OK, but the over-investment involved in those numbers hides — to a consistent strength. Improved defensive rebounding and a slightly decreased over-emphasis (I.e. guards having to involve themselves to an outsized extent) could mean more opportunities for the best point guard in America to push the pace and generate fast-break opportunities.

Purdue doesn’t have the wing athleticism it did last season, but it has a ton of shooters, a bunch of ball-handlers, bigs who run OK and masterful guard play. Transition needs to be a weapon for Purdue next season. And that starts on defense, not just with the defensive component, but the turnover-generation piece. When the Boilermakers looked in January like they might not just win the Big Ten, but run away with it, it was because of smart, targeted defense that when executed attentively, generated turnovers via help defense and a diversity of looks.

Now, Purdue may not have to get so cute schematically, but it will still bake in plenty of help, still turn Smith loose to be a chaos agent defensively, but it’ll also block more shots (which is to say, any), get better ball pressure as Cox and Harris grow with experience and draw more scrum fouls with its big front line. That stuff all leads to points, one way or another.

SCREENING (AND PICKS AND POPS)

Purdue may not run the same pick-and-roll looks with Cluff or Jacobsen as it does Kaufman-Renn, but size generally jibes with effective screening. It’s a critical bedrock of Purdue offense and the sort of modern NBA-type offense Matt Painter and P.J. Thompson draw from.

A new layer, though: Kaufman-Renn, Jacobsen and Cluff can shoot threes. How much does Purdue explore that within the confines of its practicalities? After all, a 30-percent shooter taking a three is not preferable to that same player getting a 60-percent shot at the rim.

But in moderation, the element might be worthwhile to see if it can stretch out defenses or set up high-low entries.

ADDITIONAL OPTIONS AT KEY POSITIONS

Last season, when Kaufman-Renn left games, Purdue’s offense sometimes hit dry spells without a player so much of its offensive action was built for, whether it be ball screens or the traditional post-entry game. Now, though neither Cluff nor Jacobsen will be as productive per-touch as Kaufman-Renn, they at least give Purdue someone else to throw the ball inside to, as Kaufman-Renn was when Edey was around. And remember how Purdue used to open second halves going to Kaufman-Renn inside instead of Edey? It was really important to keeping defenses off balance. Same deal now.

Also, Mayer should — should — give Purdue the luxury to take Smith off the floor more than it would last season or at least move him off the ball even more than it did last season, when Smith was really its only true primary ball-handler. Could that mean a more energized Smith at the end of games?