Fathers, sons share Purdue basketball bond over Big Ten titles

WEST LAFAYETTE − Barrett, Martin and Waddell.

Names of some of Matt Painter's former Purdue teammates.

Also the names of three players on the current roster Painter coaches.

"To have guys I played with's kids that are here, sometimes it’s a little surreal, especially when they do something that kind of mocks or act a certain way like their dad did," Painter said.

The trio has at least one thing in common with their dads' playing days.

Like their fathers decades ago, Carson Barrett, Chase Martin and Brian Waddell all are Big Ten champions, joining a unique club at Purdue that also includes John and Dru Anthrop as well as Greg and Grady Eifert as father-son combos to win Big Ten titles while playing for the Boilermakers.

Purdue clinched at least a share of the Big Ten title on Sunday after Maryland beat Northwestern, the program's league-leading 25th crown.

"We talk about how good they were back in the '90s. How much success them and coach Keady had during the '90s," said Chase Martin, a walk-on guard. "I think my dad won two in a row, Waddell’s dad won three in a row, Carson’s dad won one. How much we want to emulate that and have that success, too."

While at Purdue, Cuonzo Martin transformed into one of the Big Ten's best shooters.

After going a combined 0-for-7 in his first team seasons, Cuonzo Martin made 179 3s over his final two years at Purdue on 46 percent shooting from 1993-95 before playing in the NBA with the Vancouver Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks.

He'd find his way back to West Lafayette, coaching with David Wood as an assistant at West Lafayette High School and eventually joining the Purdue staff before journeying college basketball as head coach at Missouri State, Tennessee, California and Missouri.

Being in that family, Chase Martin moved around throughout his childhood. Without a true place to call home, Purdue always seemed the most fitting when it came to his basketball future.

"We talked about it a little bit, just how much fun he had here, how much success they had here and the culture they had," Chase Martin said of evaluating colleges with his father. "How his relationship has been with coach Painter through all these years. They played together a little bit. The relationship they developed and the culture they had here, I knew it would be a good fit for me, especially with the academics. What he explained that Purdue is, I knew it would be a good fit for me."

Like Martin, Carson Barrett is the son of a basketball coach.

Dave Barrett was the head coach at Central Catholic for 17 seasons, taking the Knights to two Class A state championship games, including one Carson's freshman year of high school. He retired after last season and oldest son Drake is now the program's head coach.

Also an All-Big Ten baseball player at Purdue, Dave Barrett played basketball for the Boilermakers from 1987-91, winning a Big Ten championship as a player his freshman season.

"My dad and I have had a special bond over Purdue since I was born really," Carson Barrett said. "I've always had a basketball in my hand. We've been to plenty of games together. For my birthday almost every year he would bring me to a Purdue game."

Waddell's father was a savvy passer. Matt Waddell collected 460 assists between 1991-95 and also scoring 1,170 career points. For all the successes, the Boiler legacies have done things their fathers never accomplished.

"You get so mixed up in the competitive aspect of the game that you forget what we’re doing," Brian Waddell said. "There’s been so many good teams here and we had the best start in school history. We lost a couple games here, but we need to be proud of what we’ve accomplished so far."

Brian Waddell, however, was not on Purdue's radar.

Not until a breakout senior season at Carmel High School where he helped lead the Greyhounds to an Indiana Class 4A state championship.

Just days after that title victory, Painter reached out and Waddell wanted nothing else than to follow in his dad's footsteps and become a Boilermaker.

"You hear it all the time, Brian Waddell second generation player of Matt Waddell," he said. "Watching Purdue since I was little obviously, it’s been such a big part of my family for so long. Being able to come out here and practice every day, it’s a surreal feeling sometimes."

Waddell, a sophomore, has been hampered by a lingering knee injury since arriving to West Lafayette, but was receiving minutes earlier this season.

Barrett, Martin and Waddell don't see many opportunities on game day as of now, but their roles as practice players can't be undervalued in Purdue's success this season.

"It's pretty cool that Paint lets all three of us come back and play together," Carson Barrett said. "Just knowing that our dads have been here and we all have Purdue blood in us, it's a pretty cool experience for all three of us. "

Painter has repeated ad nauseum throughout his coaching career that Purdue has a rare family culture feel.

He saw it firsthand when he coached Dru Anthrop and Grady Eifert, who both remain in basketball, Anthrop with the Los Angeles Lakers staff and Eifert on Penn State's coaching staff.

He sees it now in a trio of players whose dads he suited up with and battled against daily in practices.

"It’s cool. Obviously they wanted to get a degree at Purdue," Painter said. "Obviously they (the fathers) had positive experiences playing in this program."

Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.

No. 5 Purdue (24-5, 13-5) at Wisconsin (16-12, 8-10)

Thursday, 9 p.m.

TV: FS1

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Fathers, sons share Purdue basketball bond over Big Ten titles