2019 4-Star Guard Brandon Newman Commits to Purdue Basketball

Purdue added another commit to their 2019 class with the news that 6’4” shooting guard Brandon Newman has committed to the program.

Newman is an in-state prospect and is currently ranked by Rivals as the 75th best prospect in 2019, while 247Sports lists the four-star guard as the fifth best prospect from Indiana. Newman had offers from a number of Big Ten programs, including Indiana, Maryland and Ohio State. Just as recently as yesterday 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions listed the Hoosiers as a 100% favorite to land the Valparaiso native.

The shooting guard joins a 2019 class that already includes four-star forward Mason Gillis and three-star guard Isaiah Thompson. With the addition of Newman to the 2019 Class 247Sports now lists Purdue with the 14th best recruiting class for 2019 and third in the Big Ten, behind only Ohio State and Michigan.

The 6’4” guard averaged 25 points and 9.5 rebounds per game as a junior for Valparaiso. Newman should also be able to stretch the floor as he hit on 43.1% of his three pointers last season while averaging about five attempts per game. Newman’s ability to shoot the ball will be needed in 2019 as Purdue will have to replace Ryan Cline and possibly Carsen Edwards.

Newman’s high school coach echoed that sentiment during the recruiting process.

“With Brandon’s skill set and his ability to shoot and need for guys to do that, it’s a great opportunity,” said Barak Coolman.

The addition of Newman leaves one open scholarship for 2019-20 as of right now, though that could increase is Carsen Edwards leaves after his junior season. Currently there’s a lot of talk about Malik Hall, a four-star forward that is currently ranked by Rivals as the 49th best prospect in the 2019 class. Hall will likely be a point of emphasis for the Boilermakers and could be the final piece for a strong 2019 class that Matt Painter is currently building.