A huge weekend is approaching for the Purdue basketball team and Zach Edey in general as they hope to reach the Final Four, and Jon Rothstein recently spoke about why Edey's game is viewed as one that will not translate to the NBA. Rothstein made an eye-opening comparison between Zach Edey and Yao Ming as a response.
“The guy that I think Zach Edey is most reminiscent of, in terms of the way that he's playing, and I'm not saying he's, but I felt like he has been a version of this player in college basketball, is Yao Ming,” Jon Rothstein said on Run It Back. “When you look at obviously the way that he can command such a presence on the floor and so on and so forth. And I think the big thing that we've seen about Zach Edey is that he's gotten significantly better each year that he's been at Purdue.”
Rothstein is right that Edey has improved each year at Purdue. His points per game has gone up each year, including since taking the starting center role and playing just under 32 minutes a game. However, Edey is trying to end on a high note and reach heights that he has never reached before in the NCAA Tournament.
Zach Edey's legacy at Purdue
Zach Edey will undoubtedly go down as one of the greats at the Purdue basketball program, and one of the greats in college basketball in recent memory. However, Edey's first three years at Purdue have brought heartbreak in March, as the Boilermakers have been upset in each of those years, with them getting bigger each year.
“But this is a legacy weekend, not just for Purdue, but for Zach Edey. I mean, let's think about the totality of his career in the NCAA Tournament,” Rothstein said on Run It Back. “Couple of years ago in the bubble, Purdue loses North Texas in a 13-4 upset. Two years ago, Purdue on a team that had Zach Edey, Trevion Williams and Jaden Ivy, was a three seed, played a 15 seed St. Peter's in the Sweet 16, lost that game. And then last year, Purdue was on the wrong end of the biggest upset in the history of the NCAA Tournament when it lost to Fairleigh Dickinson.”
Purdue and Edey have avoided the heartbreaking upset to this points, and if they lose this weekend, it would not be as shocking as any of the results that Rothstein mentioned. Still, a Final Four and potential national championship would change the narrative a bit surrounding Edey. He will always be appreciated at Purdue, but there would be something missing without at least a Final Four on Edey's resume.
Edey and Purdue will play Gonzaga on Friday in the Sweet 16, then if they win, would take on the winner of the Creighton and Tennessee game with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
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