Who Was the Last Non-Boilermaker to be Named Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year?
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It should come as a surprise to nobody that senior Purdue guard Braden Smith was named the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year for the 2025-26 college basketball season. He was named the conference's Player of the Year last year and is looking to repeat as the league's top player.
Smith earned the honor on Tuesday, marking three consecutive seasons in which a Purdue player has received it. Zach Edey was the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year before the 2023-24 campaign, and Smith was the preseason pick ahead of the 2024-25 season. Who was the last non-Boilermaker to claim the honor?
Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis was the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year before the start of the 2022-23 season. While he received the prestigious preseason recognition, he did not claim the conference's highest individual honor at the end of that season.
Edey was named Big Ten Player of the Year in 2023 and 2024. Smith received the honor in 2025, making it three straight years in which a Boilermaker has won the postseason award, too. Can Smith repeat as the league's Player of the Year and make it four straight for Purdue?
The last player to win the Big Ten Player of the Year award who wasn't wearing a Purdue uniform? Wisconsin's Johnny Davis, following the 2021-22 season.
Last 5 Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year honorees
- 2025-26 — Braden Smith, Purdue
- 2024-25 — Braden Smith, Purdue
- 2023-24 — Zach Edey, Purdue
- 2022-23 — Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana
- 2021-22 — Kofi Cockburn, Illinois
Last 5 Big Ten Player of the Year winners
- 2024-25 — Braden Smith, Purdue
- 2023-24 — Zach Edey, Purdue
- 2022-23 — Zach Edey, Purdue
- 2021-22 — Johnny Davis, Wisconsin
- 2020-21 — Luka Garza, Iowa
Smith, Kaufman-Renn named to All-Big Ten team
Along with naming Smith the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year, the conference also released 10 players named to the preseason All-Big Ten team. Smith was the only unanimous decision, and his teammate, senior forward Trey Kaufman-Renn, was also included.
Smith is coming off a season in which he averaged 15.8 points, 8.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.2 steals per game. He was a first-team All-Big Ten selection at the end of the last season. The guard was also a first-team All-American.
Kaufman-Renn ended his junior campaign as the team's top scorer and rebounder, averaging 20.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. He was also a willing passer, dishing out 2.2 assists per contest. He was a first-team All-Big Ten selection and third-team All-American.
Smith and Kaufman-Renn are joining head coach Matt Painter in Chicago on Thursday for Big Ten Basketball Media Days. Coverage will air on the Big Ten Network.
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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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