'I Compare It to Patrick Mahomes': Matt Painter Has High Expectations for Antione West Jr.

The praise is already high for Purdue sophomore Antione West Jr. What can he accomplish in his first season on the floor with the Boilermakers?

Purdue Boilermakers head coach Matt Painter addresses the media. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

ROSEMONT, Ill. — Purdue coach Matt Painter has plenty of belief in the talent of Antione West Jr. The guard decided to redshirt in his first season in West Lafayette, but the Toledo, Ohio product is poised for a breakout season for the Boilermakers.

West has received plenty of offseason attention. He really showed off his talent during Purdue's trip to Canada, showing off his range on the offensive end and his aggressiveness defensively.

During an interview on the Big Ten Network's studio set, Painter was asked about the potential of West. He admitted that the combo guard had a strong freshman campaign on the court, but because of Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, CJ Cox, Gicarri Harris and Omer Mayer, minutes may not have been available.

"Antione West is a really good two-way player. He's a plus-five, plus-six wingspan, very, very good on the basketball, good at creating for himself, good combo guard," Painter said. "We just had a deep backcourt [last year]. How much was he going to play? Who was it going to affect?

"I compared it to Patrick Mahomes not playing instead of Alex Smith, who was a great quarterback in the NFL, and then learning that year. Then, all of a sudden, Patrick Mahomes, in a quick amount of time, was the best player in the NFL. He's going to be one of the better guards in our league."

That's quite the comparison, but one that seems to fit the circumstances. West had the talent to play last season, but under previous NCAA rules, Purdue probably didn't want to burn a year of eligibility for spot minutes.

The NCAA's five-for-five eligibility rule came on year too late for West. Though there's a good chance he may not need all five seasons before he's getting looks from scouts at the NBA level.

West continues to receive praise from teammates

Purdue Boilermakers guard Antione West (1) dribbles the basketball. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Painter has always been an honest coach, so if he has high expectations for West's potential, there's a lot of validity to it. What else stands out, though, is how complimentary the guard's teammates have been.

Omer Mayer told reporters in September that he referred to West as a "certified hooper," because of the range he has on the offensive end. At Big Ten Media Days, both CJ Cox and Daniel Jacobsen agreed that West has been the player who has stood out most during the offseason.

It's also been mentioned several times that Braden Smith predicted West would be Purdue's leading scorer this season. That's pretty high praise from one of the all-time greats.

Predicting what West can accomplish this season is impossible at this stage in the year. One thing is for certain, though, there are high expectations for the sophomore guard.

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