The Latest on Antione West Jr.'s Potential Redshirt Situation at Purdue
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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — As it currently stands, Raleigh Burgess is the only member of Purdue's 2025-26 squad who is utilizing a redshirt season. But freshman Antione West Jr. still hasn't made a final decision about how he wants to spend this year.
West was dressed and in uniform on Tuesday night as Purdue hosted Evansville, but did not see any time on the court in the Boilermakers' 82-51 victory. After the game, coach Matt Painter was asked where things stood regarding the freshman guard and his status for this season.
"With Antione, we're just going to wait for a couple of weeks, get through a couple of games, and go from there," Painter said. "He wasn't totally sure one way or the other — he's very competitive, he wants to play."
The trouble for West is that he's competing with an incredibly skilled backcourt for playing time. With Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, Gicarri Harris, CJ Cox, and Omer Mayer all on the roster, it's hard for West to carve out a role for himself.
And, unlike football, there is no "game limit" for college basketball. If a player participates in any regular-season contest, he is no longer eligible to use his redshirt year for that specific season.
So, there's a chance could play in some games this season, but is it worth losing a year of eligibility?
Painter said that he has had conversations with West, but wants the freshman to take his time before coming to a final decision.
"When you're talking about your experiences and other people's experiences, whatever, it hits home to a degree, but it doesn't really hit home," Painter said. "He wasn't quite ready for that, to make that decision, so I just said wait. Just wait a few weeks and see where we are at that time and go from there."
Sam King could potentially redshirt
Purdue senior Sam King is another redshirt candidate for the Boilermakers this year. Painter acknowledged that the decision hasn't been made yet, either.
"I'd like to redshirt Sam, he has to work some things out so we can have him back next year," Painter said. "He's done a really good job, he really helps us."
King has appeared in 16 career games over the past three seasons for the Boilermakers. He has been named to the Big Ten's All-Academic Team each of the last two years.
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THOUGHTS ON PURDUE'S WIN OVER EVANSVILLE: Purdue cruised to a 31-point victory over Evansville in its season opener on Tuesday. Here are three quick thoughts from the Boilermakers' big win. 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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