Add another achievement on the board for Purdue basketball star Zach Edey's resume as he's been awarded the honor of the Naismith Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons. Edey is the first to win this award in two straight consecutive seasons which is the first time in over 40 years since Ralph Sampson did it, though for him it was three years from 1981 to 1983.
Edey is coming off of not only National Player of the Year a few days ago, but also winning the Final Four for the Boilermakers against NC State where he scored 20 points and 12 rebounds. In an interview with Andy Katz, he said that it's a “big accomplishment,” but it's also bittersweet as he is “locked in on these games” trying to win the program's first national title.
“I mean, it's kind of tough for me right now, because obviously, it's a big deal. It's a big accomplishment. But right now, I'm kind of trying to stay locked in on these games,” Edey said. “I'm not trying to kind of get too distracted by it, it's amazing. Like, don't get me wrong. What's happening to me right now and like being a back to back Player of the Year is amazing and to have those people on the stage, you could shake their hands. You see Ralph Sampson there, it's a big deal. But like I said, I just live in the moment right now and focus on his next game.”
Edey talks about the rarity of winning award back-t0-back
There's no doubt that Edey has had another great season for the Purdue basketball team as he's averaged 24.9 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game while shooting 62.5 percent from the field this season. He expressed how winning back-to-back Naismith Player of the Year awards is “not an easy thing to do” as only two players have done it in Sampson and Bill Walton.
“It's not an easy thing to do,” Edey said. “Like I said, when you see kind of the people that have done it before you and it's not very many, but when you see like the people and what they kind of have done their careers, to think like someday people are gonna look at me like that, it's amazing.”
While basketball legend Shaquille O'Neal never accomplished the feat, he apparently reached out to Edey to congratulate him. Edey was ecstatic as O'Neal is a player he looks up to, plus he mentions his family for watching TNT broadcast clips of him and Charles Barkley.
“It's amazing in the kind of way that they've embraced me so far,” Edey said about other former college basketball greats. “Like Shaq, that's someone I've been looking up to him ever since I started playing basketball, I've been looking up to Shaq. But even before that, like my mom and dad used to watch like the little TNT section segments with the Shaq and Charles, they both love Shaq, so to take time for him to reach out and just be cool with me, it's amazing.”
Ralph Sampson on the similarities between every back-to-back winner
Sampson also spoke to Katz and was asked about Edey being the first player since him to repeat and win the award in two consecutive seasons. The University of Virginia powerhouse made an interesting connection as every player to win it back-to-back is over seven-foot tall.
“Well, first thing only back to back: Bill Walton, myself and Zach and all of us are seven foot tall. So what does that tell you?” Sampson said. “The big man is right now in the game of basketball across the board, but for him to get it and to watch his development from last year to this year and over the years is amazing.”
“He got little ways to go,” Sampson continued. “Can't dribble like me, can't post up like Bill Walton, but his ability to understand the game and where he's at, to me is really impressive. Everybody says ‘Well he's bigger than everybody else, he can just stand and get the rebound, he don't have to jump.' Okay, but that's his advantage. So you use to his advantage, but I think he has the upside to be a great player. He got a little work to do, but I think we all know that, but it's fun for me to watch the big guys. It's fun.”
Sampson on Edey needing to have great “mental” shape besides physical
There is no doubt that Edey has been targeted and been beat up in each of the Boilermakers matchups as the goal is to at least maintain the big-man. Sampson talked about overcoming that as he was dealing with the same issue in college, though it was easier for him in the NBA with the Houston Rockets as he played power forward while legend Hakeem Olajuwon was down low.
“When you're that big and that strong, you expect to get beat up, right?” Sampson said. “I got beat up and I wasn't as heavy as strong as him but that's why when with Hakeem Olajuwon in and I was able to play power forward, great you can stay down in that hole, I can run and jump whatever but you know, as that'll show him that his body's got to be in great shape. But his mental gotta be in great shape to cause when somebody beats you up. You got to beat him back.”
Sampson excited about the battle of seven-footers in title game
The upcoming matchup for Edey and the Purdue basketball team will be tough as they go up against the defending champs in UConn who has as their own seven-foot center in Donovan Clingan. If there is one person that is excited for the matchup between the two behemoths, it's Sampson.
“For me as a fan of the game, it's gonna be fun to watch two seven-footers. So that's pretty rare right, to play against each other and each of them will have a different dynamic of the game,” Sampson said. “One gets up the court a little bit faster, one post up a little bit more dominant. To me if NC State could have won that game. If they had a better second half shooting, because they figured out when Zach brings the ball down, they collapse and they got the ball right. So we'll see if the coaches Monday night takes on that same philosophy with Zach. I want to see the strategy as coaches come up with I want to see who posts up who, who plays against who, so we'll see who's dominant player at that point in time.”
The Boilermakers haven't been to the national title game since 1969 and haven't won the grand prize in the program's history. Edey and the Purdue basketball team will look to make history Monday.
Follow Us
Subscribe