Matt Painter Critical of Cousy Award Snubbing Purdue's Braden Smith: 'It Doesn't Make Sense'

Purdue sophomore guard Braden Smith was not one of 10 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award, despite averaging 12.1 points and seven assists per game. Boilermakers coach Matt Painter said that decision "doesn't make sense."

Although he's been regarded as one of the top point guards in the country this season, Purdue sophomore Braden Smith was left off the Bob Cousy Award list earlier this week. Boilermakers coach Matt Painter had a few things to say about that.

Smith has been a critical piece of Purdue's success this year, averaging 12.1 points, seven assists and 5.5 rebounds per game. He's also shooting at a 46.3% clip on the season.

The sophomore guard plays on the No. 2 team in the country, which has wins over No. 5 Tennessee, No. 9 Marquette, No. 11 Arizona, No. 14 Illinois and No. 24 Alabama. Purdue sits at 19-2 on the year.

Tuesday, Painter was asked about Smith's snub from the Bob Cousy Award list. The veteran coach didn't hold back on his comments.

"It's like the Indiana high school sectional; I think they just drew it out of a hat," Painter said in a video posted by WLFI's Kelly Hallinan. "Yeah, it doesn't make much sense. I mean, I would think that anybody that has a committee that's gonna do something, you sit down, you go through stats, you go through everything that's happened.

"Look at his head-to-head with a couple guys that are on there. Not to say they shouldn't be on there, because they're all good players. There's nobody on that list that doesn't deserve to be on that list. ... But if you go look at his numbers and how efficient he's been and how he's played. And what his team's done. His team as the No. 1 toughest schedule in the country, and so when you beat the people that we've been able to beat — then you look at that, then look at his numbers, it doesn't make any sense."

The Bob Cousy Award list of finalists was released on Monday. The 10 players making the cut included:

• Isaiah Steves, Colorado State
• Jamal Shead, Houston
• Dajuan Harris Jr., Kansas
• Tyler Kolek, Marquette
• Jahvon Quinerly, Memphis
• Boo Buie, Northwestern
• Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee
• Max Abmas, Texas
• Wade Taylor IV, Texas A&M
• Tristen Newton, UConn

That's a strong group of finalists, without question. Clearly, though, Painter believes Smith should've received a mention. 

He's probably not the only one, either.

Related Big Ten stories

• BIG TEN 2024-25 BASKETBALL SCHEDULE: The Big Ten has announced its scheduling format for the 2024-25 men's and women's college basketball season. Tuesday's announcement comes as the league prepares to expand to 18 teams, welcoming in Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington. CLICK HERE
• BIG TEN IN SUPER BOWL LVIII: The Big Ten will be well-represented in Super Bowl LVIII. A total of 19 former players from the conference will be playing for either the Kansas City Chiefs or San Francisco 49ers. CLICK HERE
• BIG TEN POWER RANKINGS: After wins over Illinois and Ohio State, has Northwestern solidified itself as a top-four team in the Big Ten? Plus, Maryland is starting to climb in the latest Big Ten basketball power rankings after evening its league record to 5-5. CLICK HERE