What is Zach Edey's ethnicity? Purdue player's background explored 

Purdue Boilermakers basketball star Zach Edey has made headlines over the years for being one of the tallest players to have ever played college basketball.

At 7-foot-4, Edey is the complete player and won the National Player of the Year last year, sweeping several prestigious awards as well.

But what is known of Edey's ethnicity?

What is Zach Edey's ethnicity?

Zach Edey was born in Toronto, Canada to his mom, Julia, who is of Chinese descent, and Glen Edey who is white. Zach is of mixed ethnicity.

Julia, his mom, who was also a mechanical engineer before retiring, has been at almost every game that the big man has played in and even handed out t-shirts with his nickname "The Big Maple" to fans during games.

In an interview with the Canadian Press, the Purdue player outlined his close relationship with his mother, and the deal that he made with her after he got a D1 scholarship.

"She retired going into my freshman year of college. That was always kind of our deal. She had said, basically, if I get a D1 scholarship then financially, she could retire. That kind of was a big reason why I wanted to get one of those scholarships. It's obviously been great," Zach Edey said.

His mom also explained the reason why he took that extraordinary decision.

"I remember being so touched and at the same time concerned, and I said to him, 'Hey, that's not your responsibility. I love that you're worried about wanting me to be there and part of this, but at the same time don't take responsibility for that,"' Julia recalled.

"It meant a lot to him getting that scholarship knowing that he could help give me those options and it meant a lot to me. I was thinking, I'm not missing a second of this," she added.

Why did Zach Edey hate basketball?

Zach Edey mostly played baseball and hockey when he was younger, explaining that he shunned basketball because everyone told him that he should play it due to his height. It was an act of rebellion not to play it.

He stopped playing hockey at 14 because he got too tall and was hoping to play college baseball.

Edey was offered the chance to play basketball at IMG Academy in Florida, but he was hesitant to stay because he missed his family.

His mother, Julia, outlines how she convinced him to stay with basketball instead of quitting, especially after missing Thanksgiving with his family.

"I said to Zach, 'I just want to make sure you don't have any regrets,"' Julia said. "You can try and if it doesn't happen, then it doesn't happen. You don't need to do this, but it depends if you want it."

With his mother by his side, Edey has become a dominant force in college basketball and will probably be headed to the NBA at some point.