Friday brought good news for Purdue basketball as it reloads its roster for the 2026-27 season.
Princeton transfer Caden Pierce announced his commitment to the Boilermakers. Pierce, a graduate transfer with one year of eligibility, sat out this season in order to use his final year elsewhere. Pierce visited UConn, Louisville, Duke and Gonzaga.
But Pierce, the brother of Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce, opted to spend it in West Lafayette. He visited Nov. 28 for the Boilers' win over Eastern Illinois and the Old Oaken Bucket game that night.
The 6-foot-7 forward was the Ivy League's player of the year in 2023-24, when he averaged 16.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists. Last season he averaged 11.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists. He's a 32.7% 3-point shooter over 275 attempts.
Purdue has long targeted a short-term high-upside transfer portal addition as a frontcourt replacement with Trey Kaufman-Renn, Oscar Cluff and Liam Murphy all leaving the program after this season.
La Lumiere's Rivers Knight has already signed with the incoming freshman class. Raleigh Burgess is using a redshirt in his second season. However, Pierce would provide an experienced, proven talent on a roster which will lose three four-year starters after this season.
Caden Pierce highlights
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Caden Pierce Purdue basketball transfer commit, roster, stats, highlights