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Indiana Basketball: Breaking down IU’s toughest competition for Khristian Lander

By Alec Lasley

LOUISVILLE, KY - DECEMBER 05: Chris Mack the head coach of the Louisville Cardinals gives instructions to Darius Perry #2 against the Central Arkansas Bears at KFC YUM! Center on December 5, 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KY - DECEMBER 05: Chris Mack the head coach of the Louisville Cardinals gives instructions to Darius Perry #2 against the Central Arkansas Bears at KFC YUM! Center on December 5, 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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MILWAUKEE, WI – MARCH 18: Head coach Matt Painter of the Purdue Boilermakers talks to his team during a timeout in the first half against the Iowa State Cyclones during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at BMO Harris Bradley Center on March 18, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WI – MARCH 18: Head coach Matt Painter of the Purdue Boilermakers talks to his team during a timeout in the first half against the Iowa State Cyclones during the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at BMO Harris Bradley Center on March 18, 2017 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

Purdue Boilermakers

The biggest Indiana rival will once again battle it out for a top in-state recruit, this time it’s someone who is still a couple of years away from entering his freshman season.

While Purdue has seemingly never had truly prolific offensive guards, Carsen Edwards changed that narrative during his tenure in West Lafayette and could eventually lead to hauling in big time point guards for Matt Painter.

The thing is, I just don’t know if that will happen with Lander.

Currently there are six guards who are underclassmen and will most likely still be with Purdue in 2021 when Lander is set to begin his freshman year. This means Lander will start and play significant minutes over six upperclassmen who have all contributed for multiple years, and while Lander is the type of player that will play significant minutes as a freshman, Purdue has never really had that.

Already, Matt Painter has two commits in the 2020 class and they both reside in the back court. While Ethan Morton, an Indiana target before his commitment, will play a lot on the wing with his height, he has point guard type ability as a playmaker. For Jaden Ivey, he is a great scorer and shooter, both on and off the ball.

It will be interesting to see how the relationship develops with Painter and Lander, but I just don’t see the fit for Lander at Purdue.

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