How Many Times Has Purdue's Braden Smith Been Named Big Ten Player of the Week?
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As the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, you might expect that Purdue's Braden Smith has received his fair share of the conference's Player of the Week honors. That's actually not been the case throughout his career, though.
On Monday, Smith was named the Big Ten Player of the Week for his performances in Purdue's wins over No. 8 Alabama and Akron. It marks just the second time in his career that he earned recognition from the league in this regard. He won it just once during the 2024-25 season (Jan. 6, 2025), the year in which he was named Big Ten Player of the Year.
Kind of hard to believe, isn't it?
Smith scored 29 points, dished out nine assists, and grabbed seven rebounds in Purdue's 87-80 victory over Alabama last Thursday. The senior guard scored 21 of those points in the second half, taking over the game and pushing the Boilermakers to an important road victory.
On Sunday, Smith followed that up with a double-double performance at Mackey Arena. In a 97-79 win over Akron, the 6-foot guard had 16 points and 10 assists. Thanks to his efforts, Purdue is off to a 4-0 start and is once again ranked as the No. 1 team in the country in the latest Associated Press poll.
In two games last week, Smith averaged 22.5 points, 7.5 assists, and 5.0 rebounds. Not a bad week at the office for the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year.
Did Trey Kaufman-Renn deserve recognition, too?
I'm not here to take away Smith's second Big Ten Player of the Week honor. He was tremendous in both of Purdue's wins. But should Trey Kaufman-Renn have gotten some recognition for his contributions, as well?
After missing the first two games of the season, the senior forward averaged 18 points, 15 rebounds, and three assists in his first two contests. He was a force on the glass and nearly unstoppable in the post.
Kaufman-Renn provided a huge spark for the Boilers in their win over Alabama, particularly in the rebounding department. He finished that game with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists. It was one of the top performances of his career.
Then, on Sunday, Kaufman-Renn scored 17 points and collected 15 more rebounds in the win over Akron. It was an impressive showing for the senior, who made his first appearance in Mackey Arena this season.
I'm sure the Big Ten didn't want to split the award between two players on the same team, but there's an argument that both were worthy of the honor this week.
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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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