Purdue Basketball’s Zach Edey on his future plans
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Zach Edey, the shy, quiet kid whom Purdue brought to West Lafayette as a development project, has grown in three basketball seasons with the Boilermakers.
Now the 7-foot-4 junior center must decide if this chapter of his life is over.
Friday night, after standing on the wrong end of a shocking NCAA tournament loss to the FDU’s 16th seed, Edey leaned forward in a folding chair in Purdue’s dressing room and pondered his next move.
More:Purdue basketball falls on the wrong side of history with loss to 16-man FDU
More:Doyel: Purdue will ‘have to sit in it’ because not enough Boilers lost to the FDU
“I want to come back and go to war with them, but at the end of the day I have to make the best decision for me,” said Edey, the Big Ten player of the year and a consensus All-American. “I have no idea how long my career will last. I have no idea what will happen in my future.”
As Edey’s stock soared during a season in which Purdue entered the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 player after winning the Big Ten’s regular-season and tournament championships, he never thought beyond that year.
Edey averaged 22.3 points and 12.9 rebounds per game as a junior.
“If it wasn’t for the money, I would go back to Purdue in a heartbeat,” Edey said. “It would be child’s play. This is my favorite dressing room I’ve ever been in. Ever. Every sport I’ve been in. Baseball. Hockey. Basketball. Every team. high school AAU. club team.
“This is my favorite locker room I’ve ever been in.”
That’s why it’s so difficult.
On the one hand, Edey can make a lot of money if he decides to play professional basketball. He knows basketball isn’t a lifetime career and you have to strike while the iron is hot.
On the other hand, his best friends are at Purdue and everyone but David Jenkins Jr. and Matt Frost can return next season.
“It was something I wanted to think about as little as possible over the next year up until this moment,” Edey said. “I was just trying to focus on our game. I was trying to focus on the season we were having. I was really trying to enjoy the moments we had. I have to take that into account now.”
“I have to do what is best for me and my family at this point. I have no idea what that will be.”
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared in The Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue Basketball’s Zach Edey on his future plans
