Luke Ertel - Purdue's Next Freshman PG

For the first time in four seasons, Purdue has questions about who is "The Guy." After the seasons led by Zach Edey, Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, and Trey Kaufman-Renn have ended, Purdue has some big shoes to fill this season.

One player who could fill them? A 6'2", 180-pound freshman point guard from Indiana.

Luke Ertel was the 42nd-ranked player in the 2026 class per 247Sports composite. When he suits up for the Boilermakers this winter, he'll be the second-highest-rated recruit in Purdue history, behind only the late Caleb Swanigan.

Of course, if we've learned anything by now, it's that rankings do not matter to Matt Painter. Carsen Edwards is the 34th-highest-ranked prospect in Purdue history since 1999, and he went on to have an incredible career. Braden Smith is the 50th-best recruit in that time span, and he just broke the career assist record. Zach Edey ranks 57th, and well, we know what kind of career he had.

All of that is to say, just because Ertel was ranked high doesn't automatically mean he gets playing time. At the same time, they have a track record of developing players like Ertel.

The Scoring

Luke Ertel had a fantastic high school career. During his last season of AAU, playing for Indy Elite as part of the Adidas 3SSB circuit, Ertel averaged 18 points, 5.9 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.9 steals while shooting 36.% from three, while helping lead them to a 22-4 record that summer.

During his senior season at Mount Vernon (IN), Ertel averaged 24.5 points, 9.9 rebounds, 6.6 assists, and 1.8 steals while shooting 41% from three and leading Mount Vernon to its first boys basketball state championship in school history.