Carsen Edwards put together an impressive resume during his three seasons at Purdue, and his now-teammates took notice.
In his third and final season with the Boilermakers, Edwards averaged 24.3 points over 36 games, culminating with his 42-point performance in an Elite Eight loss to the eventual national champion Virginia Cavaliers. So yes, Edwards can flat out score.
Fellow Boston rookie Romeo Langford faced off against Edwards while at Indiana last season and, now that they’re both with the Celtics, he was able to share his scouting report on the sharp-shooting point guard.
“Just don’t let him touch the ball,” Langford told reporters Monday, via CLNS Media. “When he gets the ball, I just feel like he’s a threat in multiple ways, not just scoring but passing. I also had the opportunity to play with him before on the USA team when we went to Egypt, so I know how great of a teammate he is and also back then he was one of our best defenders. So he’s a great two-way player, so really just don’t let him touch the ball, and I was also happy to see he got drafted a Celtics just to have another fellow Big Ten player and also a friend of mine.”
The respect and praise for Edwards’ game didn’t stop there.
Grant Williams and his Tennessee Volunteers were eliminated by Purdue in the Sweet Sixteen with Edwards posting 29 points on 8-of-22 shooting. Despite ending his college career, Williams has plenty of admiration for his new teammate.
“With Carsen, our whole thing was try and not let him catch it, just like Romeo (Langford) said,” Williams said. “We know he can light it up from range. He’s a guy who’s physical enough to guard… He can switch to a four-man in the league and hold his own. I call him a little bullet, because of how stocky and strong he is. Little linebacker or something like that. He’s a guy who, I know he loves that left hand, but he can go both ways. He’s a really talented offensive player and his resume speaks for itself.”
Williams mentioning Edwards’ switching ability during his introductory press conference will surely catch the ears of Brad Stevens. Matt Painter, Purdue’s head coach, used a system where players would switch one through four on defense, so yes, Edwards does have experience there, but this is a whole new level.
The 6-foot guard noted this Monday, saying that if he were to be put in this position at the pro-level, he’d do his best and “be as physical as (he) can,” but Edwards is staying grounded amid the early praise.
“I have a good balance understanding I have so much to work on still, and I have so many ways I can improve and things like that,” Edwards said. “I appreciate people congratulating me and telling me how well I played, but I still understand how far I am from where I can be as a player.
“I just envision myself trying to do what’s best for this team,” he added. “Just try to find a way to play, man. It’s hard for me to just come in and start telling you guys what I envision myself doing. I just got here. So I just want to do whatever they tell me to do.”
