Off the Cluff: What Does Portal Addition of Oscar Cluff Mean to Purdue’s Roster?

The addition of Oscar Cluff was a major sign for Purdue and put the rest of the country on notice with the Final For still to be played

Heading into the second weekend of the NCAA Tourney, Matt Painter didn’t mince words about what his plan was going to look like once the off season hit. When asked, Painter said “We’re going to get a guy or two here in the portal in the spring” and that led to lots of discussions about who could he have been talking about? You see, with this new age of the portal in college sports, the portal had already been open for several days.

Painter is a master at management of his entire program and the way his roster is constructed is probably at the top of what makes him so great. That probably comes from his first attempt to really rebuild a roster earlier in his career once the ‘Baby Boilers’ had all bounced from the crib into the NBA and he was left with a collection of talent that was, how do I say this nicely…lacking. Since that time, Painter quite literally painted masterclass after masterclass of how to build a program through a roster that complemented each and every piece. This one, however, might be his best one yet.

Painter knew he was going to need to dip into the portal for a big man following the season with Caleb Furst running his eligibility dry (unless you are Nijel Pack who apparently will seemingly get a sixth year of eligibility). There was still some sense of uncertainty about the players Purdue had left other than TKR in the frontcourt. Daniel Jacobsen missed an important first year to develop on court experience while Will Berg just seemed to struggle in an increased role.

With Purdue’s season ending in the Sweet Sixteen, the picture was going to get much clearer for Painter as Brian Waddell and Will Berg entered the portal rather quickly. That meant it was very clear that Purdue not only wanted to get a transfer big but that it NEEDED a transfer big man if it wanted to take advantage of the three man class that very well could be the best in program history. Painter and Brantley had lots of options in the portal and what better argument could those two have than what players had seen done with Isaac Haas, Caleb Swanigan, Matt Haarms, Zach Edey, and TKR.

I don’t think many people expected that a player of the caliber of Oscar Cluff would mark the first transfer target for the Boilers this season.

Cluff is rated as the #1 overall transfer player in the On3 rankings and as the seventh overall when accounting for Rivals and 247 Sports as well. He is a player that is highly regarded for a reason coming from South Dakota State where he averaged 17.6 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and had an effective field goal percentage of 64%. He was also rated as the nation’s best rebounder on Kenpom where he was #1 overall in defensive rebounding percentage and #2 in offensive rebounding percentage, an area where the Boilers needed clear improvement.

The question is, what does this mean for the Boilers moving forward? Let’s take a look at a few points:

1: Cluff Bolsters the Frontcourt from an Area of Strength to Overwhelming Opponents

Cluff’s addition adds to what many believed was going to be one of the better front courts in the country with Trey Kaufman-Renn returning for his senior season and Daniel Jacobsen coming off injury. What TKR did this past season was nothing short of amazing and he is likely to continue that into next season as his game continues to expand. He has an ability to shoot from deep and with better rebounders around him, he will likely get more chances to do just that. Alongside a player like Cluff, Purdue could very well begin running similar big-big PNR like what we saw from Michigan to expand Purdue’s offensive efficiency.

Cluff is a big bodied post player who is kind of coming into his own after a late arrival to organized basketball (that seems familiar, doesn’t it?). Cluff didn’t start playing until fourteen years old meaning he has only played organized basketball for around seven years. Under Brantley’s tutelage, Cluff could be expected to continue his growth in his low post scoring. Where he also excels is his ability to pass, especially when being double teamed, and rebounding at a high level. He hasn’t taken a lot of shots from behind the arc but his shot does look relatively smooth and should be able to provide enough of a threat to pull defenders out to the arc.

As for how he fits into the rotation, it is likely that Cluff starts next season and the trio splits playing time between both frontcourt positions. Jacobson’s ability to step out and be a threat from behind the arc allows for the floor to still be very spread out while TKR has already proven he can play alongside a dominate post presence during Edey’s last season. TKR is going to get as many minutes as he can handle but the fact CMP is going to have the ability to rotate more with little to no drop-off means they will be fresher deeper into games and, more importantly, deeper into the season.

2: What Does it Mean for Cam Heide?

I’m not sure it really changes much in the way for Cam Heide’s future at Purdue. Heide is a different kind of player that has a distinct role for the Boilers. He is what many in the NBA would classify as a ‘3 and D’ wing and he plays to that as well as anyone in the country coming off the bench. Over the last eleven games of the season, Heide shot 60% from behind the arc while averaging 4 rebounds per game. That, coupled with his improvement on defense, means he has a significant place on this team next season.

At worst, Heide will likely be Purdue’s 6th man coming off the bench next season as he is capable of playing both wing positions for Painter and PJ Thompson’s offense. Offensively, PJ Thompson will have an easy time aligning him with the other players on the floor given the high shooting capabilities and rebounding. Defensively, that is where he may have to make some strides as he’ll be needed to defend smaller players next season if he wants to play alongside those other players.

However, at best, Heide could very well start for the Boilers next season. Imagine that possibility and realize that it is a distinct reality for Purdue given what was mentioned previously. Painter doesn’t hold any starting spots for anyone (save Zach Edey and Braden Smith for obvious reasons) and there is no reason to believe Heide couldn’t start at either the 4 or the 3 next season.

3: Where Does this Leave the Rest of the Roster?

Well, there isn’t much else that this impacts moving forward. Myles Colvin entering the portal hurts the Boilers from the sense that you are losing an experienced wing who really came on defensively this season and grew more confident into the role that was needed from him. That means Purdue currently has eleven scholarship players (Antione West will join Purdue this summer) for next season with the ability to add up to fifteen given the new changes to rosters starting next season. Will Purdue use all of those? I think that’s highly unlikely and that Purdue will add one to two more players and offer scholarships to players like Aaron Fine, Sam King, and Josh Furst.

4: Who is Purdue Going to Add Now?

It has been reported already that former Northeastern guard Rashad King has been a priority target for the Boilers. The to be senior made a huge jump this past season while averaging 18.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists, while shooting 31.9% from behind the arc. The 6’6 and 200lb guard would provide size to the backcourt along with Gicarri Harris, CJ Cox, and Jack Benter.

Former Purdue target Nijel Pack (yes, he may still have eligibility left) just announced he is transferring from Miami (Florida) for his final season. The 6’ combo guard was a high priority back when Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer were getting ready to enter Purdue for their freshman seasons. Pack is as good of a scorer as their is in the country but hasn’t had the support around him like he did when he helped Miami to the Final Four in 2023. If Pack was willing to come off the bench for a chance at another final four run in his hometown of Indianapolis, it would bolster another strength of the Boilers to a level that would be overwhelming.

Purdue is going to need help at the wing with the exit of Myles Colvin and a player who is able to shoot well from three and play defense will be the priority there. Purdue is going to add Jack Benter, a 6’5 guard who reportedly shot the ball well and flashed an ability to pass the ball at a high level, but an experienced player at that position for one to two seasons is what Purdue needs.

5: The Bar Has Been Raised

Going into next season, Purdue was going to be expected to again battle for a B1G title and be one of the better teams in the country. Now, it can be expected that they could be the preseason #1 team in the country adding what amounts to the absolute best addition Purdue could hope for moving into next season. Even if Purdue doesn’t add anyone else to the fold, they will be the favorite in a lot of people’s eyes because of the return of Smith, TKR, Loyer, and the supporting case around them. The addition of Cluff not only raises the ceiling for Purdue, it raises its’ floor as well. Long story short…Purdue isn’t going anywhere.