Purdue Coach Matt Painter Heaps Praise on Indiana Guard Lamar Wilkerson

Indiana’s Lamar Wilkerson is special.

That’s clear to every member of the Hoosiers’ organization, to the entire fanbase, and to anybody who has flipped on an Indiana game this year.

Still, us consistently lauding Wilkerson only carries so much weight – certainly less than one Matt Painter, who is as credible (and certainly unbiased) a source as they come. Here’s what the Purdue head coach had to say about Wilkerson, before the Hoosier-Boilermaker showdown:

Purdue's Matt Painter details game of Indiana's standout guard Lamar Wilkerson

“He’s like any other big-time scorer. He’ll go through the game and start off and just get hot right away and then you’re in for it, right? You’re absolutely in for it,” started Painter.

“Or he’ll just kind of get through the game, maybe not have as many looks, miss a couple or do whatever. [But] it just takes one make for him. It just takes you fouling him, getting to the free-throw line, hitting a three or whatever, and then now he’s there. Sometimes people that score the basketball, that’s not their case. It’s like this just isn’t their day,” continued Painter.

Jan 20, 2026; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Indiana Hoosiers guard Lamar Wilkerson (3) is defended by Michigan Wolverines guard Nimari Burnett (4) in the first half at Crisler Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

A ticking time-bomb just waiting to go off for a scoring explosion, Wilkerson is a bucket – or, more accurately, a handful of buckets – waiting to happen.

His long-distance ability is perhaps the most notable aspect of his game (hitting 3.4 triples per game at 40.6 percent), but Wilkerson also has a silky-smooth midrange pull-up, a severely underrated downhill game, and is phenomenal at drawing whistles.

“Even though he has had a couple games where he didn’t score as much, but if you watch him, like against Nebraska, and some of the shots that he made and how he made it against one of the best defenses in the country, it’s impressive. He’s an impressive player.

Obviously, he made 10 threes in a game earlier in the season. So, just a really good scorer, but [he’s] got a good way about him,” Painter told the assembled media on Monday.

“He’s got a good sturdy base in terms of catching and opening up, knocking down that shot, getting you on your heels, getting a stepback, getting angles, drawing fouls, getting to his pull up, getting all the way to the rim. Sometimes you deal with scorers, sometimes you deal with guys that are more shooters. He’s a little bit of both. He can hurt you in a lot of different ways.”

Spot-up shooters, specifically those gifted at creating open space (running off screens and becoming available is a skill), are nearly impossible to guard. Chasing a sharpshooter around the arc for an entire game is an unenviable task for any opponent. But that’s what Wilkerson forces teams to do.

He just so happens to also be a skilled player getting to the rack, along with being a talented finisher at the cup (shooting a sterling 53.4 percent on two-pointers this year). A do-it-all, three-level scorer with seemingly zero offensive flaws, Wilkerson is an extremely tough cover.

On Tuesday vs. the Boilermakers, the 6-foot-6 guard will need to display just how impossible he is to shut down, otherwise the Hoosiers may find points exceedingly tough to come by and, subsequently, be forced to rely on their defense to stay in the contest – which is a recipe for disaster against Purdue’s Braden Smith and the No. 2 offense (per KenPom) in the nation.