Purdue Basketball: Isaac Haas is now the big man on campus

Big man Isaac Haas is on the verge of a breakout season for Purdue Basketball.

Whenever teams played Purdue last season, it wasn’t much of a secret as to how Boilermakers would stack up. With two seven-footers in Isaac Haas and A.J. Hammons, and 6’9″ forward Caleb Swanigan, Purdue won and lost its games in the paint.

Hammons left for the NBA after what seemed like a decade in West Lafayette, handing the reins off to Haas permanently.

In just 14 minutes per game, Haas was able to drop 9.8 points and corral 3.7 rebounds per game. That’s astounding efficiency. Prorate those numbers over a 30 minute slate, and you’re looking at roughly 20 points and eight rebounds on a nightly basis.

Haas’ physical presence rivals that of Ivan Drago in Rocky IV. At 7’2″, 290 pounds, you’ll be hard-pressed to find someone more intimidating in the paint.

That’s not middle linebacker size and not your typical center size either. That’s approaching superhuman-Terminator status.

With that being said, Haas sometimes has the tendency to not use his strength at full force. There’s no reason a player of his size and caliber shouldn’t have his way in the paint at all times. Yet teams succeeded versus Haas last year when he chose to give in to interior defenses, shooting over them versus driving through them to the hoop.

Furthermore, there’s a reason he averaged just 14 minutes per game. His conditioning has seemingly always been subpar, which is to be expected out of someone his size.

This may be the season it all changes.

“I’ve been working really hard,” Haas told the News-Sentinel. “I’ve been conditioning all the time. I believe I’m in the best shape of my life.

If Haas has found a way to maintain even average conditioning, his consistent presence on the court will be a major boon for Purdue’s offensive and defensive success.

In all seriousness, how will teams stop this guy?

Hack-a-Haas? Not after he raised his free throw percentage from 54.7 percent to 71.4 percent last season.

What combination of defenders can stop this dribble move and thrown down in the paint?

How about on defense?

If Haas can block his teammate Vince Edwards in a scrimmage roughly three months ago, imagine what he’ll do when the competitive juices are flowing this season.

I’ve always felt Isaac Haas had the potential to be the most dominant big man in the Big Ten. This season, he’ll have the opportunity to showcase himself as such. And if all goes well, he may be one of the best in the entire country.