Braden Smith Makes History at Purdue

Braden Smith, a junior point guard from Westfield, has made history by becoming the first Purdue Boilermaker to win the Bob Cousy Award. The award recognizes the best point guard in college basketball, and Smith beat out top players from Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, and Marquette to take home the honor.

Smith expressed his gratitude for the award, saying, "I am honored to be the recipient of the Bob Cousy Award and would like to thank the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Mr. Cousy for this award." He also gave a shout-out to his teammates, coaches, and support staff, stating, "To be included among the elite players that have won this award is very humbling and I am grateful to be selected to join that prestigious group."

Bob Cousy himself congratulated Smith on social media, saying, "I've seen you play three times, and you're a wonderful player. You have three years left, and I offer my congratulations before obviously a successful pro career. So, job well done!"

This award adds to an already impressive collection of accolades for Smith, who was named a consensus first-team All American and the Big Ten's Player of the Year just last month. His junior season was his best yet, with averages of 15.8 points and 8.7 assists per game.

Smith joins Zach Edey and Carsen Edwards as positional award winners at Purdue. The university has now had four total positional award recipients, ranking second behind only Villanova's five. Smith is still a finalist for the Naismith and Wooden awards.