Matt Painter Details Unique Path to Recruiting Guard Braden Smith to Purdue

"I never saw him play in person. I had a kid decommit from me — I had an assistant, Micah Shrewsberry, leave our place to go to Penn State, and a player we had recruited also went to Penn State. That opened it up," Painter said.

"We had multiple people in that area telling us, 'Hey, this kid's for real. He's really, really good.' I didn't have a scholarship (to offer). When it came open, I jumped on about five or six guys and started watching film. All of them were ranked nationally except him. Then I came back to him and thought, 'Am I getting fooled by film?' Because (Smith) was better than all these ranked guys — this isn't even remotely close."

After seeing Smith's film, Painter decided to pick up the phone and start calling basketball experts who could provide more insight on the Westfield point guard. Obviously, the Boilermaker coach liked what he heard.

"So, I start calling people ... he has a couple of NBA guys in his community who work for the Pacers, so I felt comfortable with their ability to evaluate and understand, and they had seen him a lot. I had a college coach changing jobs ... he called him a basketball savant. That's when it registered with me right away," Painter said.

"He says, 'I'm telling you, he reads angles, he plays passing lanes, he sees things before they happen, he's the best passer you're ever going to have. Just take him. Just take him.' That's when I pumped the brakes and stopped calling people, because I didn't want anybody to be on the same scent. I got him on a Zoom (meeting) and two days later he committed."

Smith etches his name in Purdue record books

It's kind of crazy, isn't it? if Shrewsberry hadn't accepted the job at Penn State, Smith's career at Purdue may have never become a reality. Now, as he enters his senior season, he's already considered one of the all-time greats in program history.

Last season, Smith past Bruce Parkinson as Purdue's all-time assist leader. He currently has 758 assists, needing 319 to pass Bobby Hurley for most in the history of college basketball (1,076).

Smith is also a member of Purdue's 1,000-point club and has collected more than 500 rebounds. Last season, he was a first-team All-American and All-Big Ten selection. The Indiana native was the Big Ten Player of the Year and won the Bob Cousy Award, honoring the top point guard in college basketball.

This season, Smith has a chance to win the National Player of the Year award, win a third Big Ten title and potentially lead Purdue to a national championship.

It doesn't really matter how Smith got to Purdue, Painter, his staff, and everyone in West Lafayette is happy he's there.