Braden Smith's Current, Former Teammates Respond to Announcement of Return to Purdue
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Much like he did throughout the 2024-25 season, Braden Smith stole college basketball headlines on Monday. The Purdue guard and Bob Cousy Award winner announced that he will be returning next season to complete his career with the Boilermakers. His return instantly makes Purdue a national title contender for the 2025-26 campaign.
As you might expect, there were plenty of reactions to Smith's big announcement on Monday. While we could highlight the thousands of fan responses, why not take a look at what some of the Purdue guard's teammates — past and present — had to say about the news.
Fletcher Loyer might have had the best reaction of all, simply posting a ring in response to Smith's post on Instagram. Clearly, the Boilers have national title aspirations heading into next season.
Fletcher Loyer’s response to Braden’s official announcement pretty much sums up Purdue’s goal next season … pic.twitter.com/HIoAi4vsN9
— Dustin Schutte (@SchutteDustin) April 14, 2025
Lance Jones, who played on Purdue's 2023-24 squad that won a Big Ten title and reached the National Championship Game, commented, "My heart is full."
Former Purdue guard Jon Octeus reacted by saying, "Thank God," and Chase Martin said, "Happiest day of my life." Mason Gillis and Daniel Jacobsen also responded positively by posting emojis in the comment section.
Teammates Gicarri Harris, Jack Benter, CJ Cox, Camden Heide and Will Berg also liked the post, as did former Purdue superstar and two-time National Player of the Year, Zach Edey.
Smith's father, Dustin Smith, also added a comment on X after the announcement was made.
"Let's go boiler nation," he wrote. "This group is gonna be a blast to watch. Best coach, best team, best arena and absolute best fans. Let's gooooo."
Let’s go boiler nation. This group is gonna be a blast to Watch. Best coach, best team, best arena and the absolute best fans. Let’s gooooooooo pic.twitter.com/4EjYkT8Uhe
— Dustin Smith (@dsmitty72503) April 14, 2025
Smith is coming off a year in which he averaged 15.8 points, 8.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 2.2 steals, earning Big Ten Player of the Year, first-team All-America and Bob Cousy Award honors. He's also the all-time assist leader at Purdue.
The Boilermakers closed out the 2024-25 campaign with a 24-12 record and reached the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. They will return a huge chunk of their production from last year's squad, including Smith, Fletcher Loyer, Trey Kaufman-Renn, CJ Cox and Gicarri Harris.
Needless to say, there's a lot of excitement coming out of West Lafayette following Smith's announcement on Monday.
Related stories on Purdue basketball
BOILER BANTER COLUMN: Purdue All-American guard Braden Smith announced his return for the 2025-26 campaign on Monday. It automatically puts Purdue as a favorite to win a national title next season. CLICK HERE
BOILERS REACH OUT TO FORMER UNC GUARD: Purdue is one of multiple schools that has reportedly been in contact with former North Carolina guard Cade Tyson, who recently entered the transfer portal. CLICK HERE
SMITH RECEIVES SHOUTOUT FROM WOODEN AWARD: Members of the John Wooden Award had nothing but kind words for Purdue junior guard Braden Smith, who recently received his All-American award. CLICK HERE
PURDUE BASKETBALL ROSTER TRACKER: Keeping track of the retuning players, incoming recruits and the transfer situation for Purdue basketball for the 2025-26 college basketball season. CLICK HERE
Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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