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The 2020 college basketball season was anticlimactic, to say the least.

There were no Cinderellas. No stunning tournament upsets. Nobody cut down the nets in Atlanta. The list goes on.

But all of those things make the 2020-21 hoops season one of the most highly anticipated in recent memory, especially in Bloomington and West Lafayette.

Indiana’s fiercest rivalry gained three Top 100 players in this year’s national recruiting rankings: Ethan Morton (Purdue, #79), Jaden Ivey (Purdue, #80), and Jordan Geronimo (Indiana, #91).

Paul Biancardi, ESPN’s head of college basketball recruiting, joined The Dan Dakich Show on Thursday to discuss the aforementioned freshmen and how they can impact their new squads.

Jaden Ivey (Purdue)

6’4” SG – Mishawaka, IN – La Lumiere School

Biancardi: “I’ve always liked him because he just knows how to play. He’s got that basketball I.Q. that I know you (Dakich) talk about a lot. I look for it desperately all the time with kids. He understands how to play, and he understands how to score. He’s a good athlete.”


Ethan Morton (Purdue)

6’4” SG – Butler, PA – Butler Senior High School

Biancardi: “I.Q. is great. Toughness is good. Both [Morton and Ivey] are 6’4”/6’5”. You know Matt Painter as well as anyone, Dan. He likes kids that have I.Q. and toughness. These two kids bring that.”


Jordan Geronimo (Indiana)

6’5” SF – Concord, NH – Saint Paul High School

Biancardi: “This kid is physical. He is 6’5”. He’s 200 pounds-plus. Gets in the lane anytime he wants. Strong, physical, high motor, high hustle guy. Outside shot needs work, but his drive, his pass game, his finish game – he’s a strong scoring small forward…Geronimo brings a lot of energy that I know Indiana will appreciate.”


 

Both Purdue and IU will need these freshmen to adapt quickly to physical Big 10 play if either school wants to compete for a top spot in the conference.

“When you look at those three kids…I love the effort and energy level,” Biancardi said. “The fans will love it. And [it’s] something that, quite frankly, we all expect.”

 

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