Purdue Basketball Reportedly Exploring International Summer Trip
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Purdue coach Matt Painter tries to maximize every opportunity in the summer. Thanks to a recent rule change by the NCAA, the Boilermakers may be heading on an international trip in the coming months.
Nathan Baird of The Indianapolis Star reports that Purdue is "finalizing details" to play a handful of games near Vancouver, Canada, in July. The goal would be to play four games while on the trip.
This summer would be a particularly advantageous time for Painter to take his team on an international trip. Purdue is losing its three senior leaders from the 2025-26 season in Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and Trey Kaufman-Renn. The Boilermakers are also losing big man Oscar Cluff, leaving four spots in last year's starting lineup open.
An international trip would allow Purdue to play in competitive games against a legitimate opponent before the start of the 2026-27 season.
Before the NCAA changed its rule to allow teams to take international tours every year, programs were limited to one trip every four seasons. The Boilermakers last traveled in the summer of 2023, playing games in Germany, Italy, Austria and the Czech Republic.
Purdue's 2023-24 team won the Big Ten regular-season title and reached the National Championship Game before falling to UConn. It was the program's first Final Four appearance since 1980.
New faces and new roles for Purdue in 2026-27
Several changes are coming to West Lafayette for the 2026-27 season. For the first time in four years, the Boilermakers will be without Smith, Loyer and Kaufman-Renn, a trio that left Purdue as the winningest senior class in program history.
As those seniors head out the door, Purdue is welcoming in a four-man recruiting class that includes point guard Luke Ertel, shooting guard Jacob Webber, center Sinan Huan and forward Rivers Knights. The Boilermakers have also added former Ivy League Player of the Year and Princeton star Caden Pierce via the transfer portal.
Taking an international trip and playing against legitimate opponents would force Purdue's newcomers to develop team chemistry with the 10 returning players on the roster. It would also provide Painter and his staff an opportunity to tinker with lineups and see how the returning Boilermakers perform in new roles.
It would also provide live experience for Antione West Jr. and Raleigh Burgess after both used last season as a redshirt year.
Although Purdue loses its top four scorers from last season, it does return several key contributors. Those who played a pivotal role for the Boilermakers during the 2025-26 campaign include C.J. Cox, Gicarri Harris, Jack Benter, Omer Mayer and Daniel Jacobsen.
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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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