\u201cThe Field of 68: After Dark\u201d YouTube show<\/a>, he shared how coach Matt Painter gave him Mayer\u2019s WhatsApp number and encouraged him to reach out.<\/p>\n\u201cPJ told me we got a guy coming in that he thinks could really help and benefit our team, and he told me to reach out,\u201d Smith explained. \u201cHe gave me his WhatsApp number since he was from overseas. So I texted him on WhatsApp. I was like, \u2018Hey man, like super excited. Been watching some of your clips.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Painter sent Smith a long highlight video showing Mayer\u2019s skills\u2013 his ability to start the offense, make plays for teammates, and score. Seeing another guard with this kind of game made Smith realize what Purdue could do with a balanced backcourt. Plus, it meant Smith wouldn\u2019t have to carry the entire load alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was watching and I was like, \u2018Man, it\u2019d be awesome like having somebody else to play with,’\u201d Smith said. \u201cAnd obviously I\u2019ve never had that before. Like and that\u2019s no offense to anybody I\u2019ve played with. Just you haven\u2019t had anybody like him.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
This move wasn\u2019t random. Purdue\u2019s need for a guard like Mayer had been clear for seasons, especially after their 2024 national championship game run and the next year\u2019s Sweet Sixteen loss to Houston. Smith said the coaches kept telling him they needed someone with Mayer\u2019s skillset so history didn\u2019t repeat itself.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve said this for a few years. Like you need somebody like him. We can help you,\u201d Smith explained.<\/p>\n
How Are Smith and Mayer Adjusting to Playing Together?<\/p>\n
Smith and Mayer know there\u2019s work to do before things feel natural. Learning to play together isn\u2019t a walk in the park. Smith admitted there have been challenging pickup games and honest conversations about sharing ball-handling duties.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be an adjustment for me. It\u2019s an adjustment for him. We\u2019ve talked about it. I\u2019ve text him about it,\u201d Smith said. \u201cLike he\u2019s called me after we\u2019ve had a couple bad days of pickup this past couple weeks. Like, hey man, I\u2019m sorry this isn\u2019t me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith has stepped up as a mentor, but he\u2019s quick to admit he\u2019s learning too. For the first time in his career, he\u2019s got another guy who can run the offense just as well. \u201cI\u2019m like, \u2018dude, like you\u2019re good. You\u2019re good. Like it\u2019s part of me, figuring it out too.\u2019 Like I\u2019m always like with the ball in my hands and all that stuff. So it\u2019s as much as an adjustment for me as it is for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019s plenty of excitement underneath the growing pains. Smith likes the idea of playing off Mayer, taking catch-and-shoot threes, and not always being the focal point. \u201cThe thing is that we\u2019re both good enough to be able to play off each other,\u201d Smith explained. \u201cWhether you have the ball, like I\u2019d love to stand in the corner and just shoot a wide open three. Conserve some energy.\u201d<\/p>\n
After three years of doing most of the heavy lifting, Smith is looking forward to some easier, wide-open looks\u2013 something new for him. Mayer can score and pass, and it takes the pressure off Smith every possession. \u201cHe\u2019s got that ability to do what I do and pass the ball and create for others and go score for himself,\u201d Smith noted.<\/p>\n
Smith\u2019s efforts to welcome Mayer and guide him through the tough parts show how committed he is to this partnership. If their chemistry comes together, Purdue\u2019s backcourt might finally have the balance they\u2019ve been missing the last few postseasons.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Something clicked when Braden Smith saw Omer Mayer\u2019s highlight reel. This wasn\u2019t just another freshman recruit. This was…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":223528,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[1339,1317,1337,1338,62,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-223527","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-basketball","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-ncaa","10":"tag-ncaa-basketball","11":"tag-ncaabasketball","12":"tag-sports","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-unitedstates","15":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115196965308988390","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/223527","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=223527"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/223527\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/223528"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=223527"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=223527"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=223527"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}