5 incredible facts about Purdue sensation Zach Edey

Zach Edey has made a name in college basketball in the last couple of seasons. The Purdue big man has reached a great height in the sports despite his unlikely background and tough route to getting along with the game.

Following a superb career in the NCAA, Edey will be on his way to the NBA in 2024, likely as a first-round pick. It’s worth examining where he’s coming from and how he arrived here.

We take a look at five amazing facts about the two-time consensus All-American.

Five Incredible Facts about Zach Edey

#1, Multiple sports background

Zach Edey played multiple sports as a young boy. He played baseball and fell in love with it because his father was a youth baseball coach. Growing up in Canada also meant hockey was a sport he needed to be involved in. Despite excelling in this sport, fate would later take him to the basketball court.

#2, Late obsession with basketball

Edey started with baseball and hockey, however, his coaches in both sports always advised him to play basketball mainly due to his towering height. Ninety, he didn't want to play the game because people wanted him to. He would eventually give basketball a chance in his sophomore year at high school.

#3, Nearly quitting basketball

Choosing to play the game of basketball meant Zach Edey had to leave his homeland for the United States, far away from everyone he loved. He enrolled at the IMG Academy in Florida after he arrived in the States. However, he soon became homesick and wanted to quit it all. Thanks to his mother, the center decided to continue pushing on.

#4, The tallest player in Big Ten history

Listed as 7-foot-4 as a Purdue freshman, Edey is the tallest man in the Big Ten. This made him noticeable and famous right from his early days with the Boilermakers.

#5, NIL Deals

Zach Edey began his college basketball career at a time when student-athletes were allowed to benefit financially from their popularity while maintaining their amateur status. The Purdue star has been a big benefactor of the concept with an NIL value of $810,000 (according to On3). This ranks him 43rd overall and 6th in college basketball.