One of the biggest names in the 2024 NBA Draft, literally and figuratively, is Purdue’s Zach Eddy.
The 7-foot-4 center averaged 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game last season and won the Wooden Award for the second consecutive year, a feat not accomplished by a men’s college basketball player since Virginia’s Ralph Sampson in 1983.
In 2023-24, the 22-year-old led Purdue to a 35-4 record, a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and a trip to the national finals, something the Boiler Markers haven’t reached since 1969.
Eddie’s length, size and defensive ability make him a likely first-round pick in the 2024 draft, which begins Wednesday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
On the eve of the first day of draft celebrations, let’s take a deeper look at Eddie’s background, specifically the athletic traits he inherited from his parents.
His mother is also tall.
Eddie’s mother, Julia, has become a familiar presence to those who attend Boilermaker games (whether in person or on television), with camera crews regularly promoting her on the Jumbotron and during broadcasts.
But she also has a fascinating story of her own.
Julia is a first-generation Chinese Canadian who grew up in the suburbs of Toronto and helped out in her family’s Chinese restaurant as a child, she said. Gold and Black.
Her X account profile reveals that she is a retired engineer and nuclear theory teacher, both of which fit with Purdue’s emphasis on engineering and science.
When it comes to looks, Julia is quite tall at 6 feet 3 inches, which she perceives as unique.
“I’m not as conspicuous as he is. [Zach] “Asian women are normal, but there aren’t that many Asian women who are 6’3,” Julia told Gold and Black magazine in December 2023. “It’s maybe a little bit unfamiliar to be out of the norm, but it’s those little bits that make you think, ‘Oh, this is just one step on the journey.’ It took a little bit of an adjustment.”
Like her son, Julia began playing basketball in her first year of high school.
She also participated in track and field, specializing in the discus.
But Julia said her parents called sports “just games” and focused on their studies and their restaurant job.
Glen Eddy was a baseball player.
Eddie’s athletic history doesn’t just come from his mother.
His father, Glenn, is also Canadian and worked at a gas station as a teenager. Matt Norlander of CBS Sports.
When he wasn’t working, Glenn played baseball as a child.
That passion quickly rubbed off on Eddie, whose first love was baseball.
Eddie was a pitcher, specifically a closer, which Julia says suited his need for pressure: He pitched until he hurt his shoulder, and he had a wide strike zone when batting.
He is also good at basketball. AP
Even when Eddie first took up basketball, he saw it as useful training for the baseball he wanted to pursue at the next level.
“He was hoping for a D-1 scholarship to baseball,” Julia told the outlet, “and it turned out to be basketball. Who would have guessed?”
Julia went to almost all of Zach’s games.
Whether Purdue was playing in West Lafayette, Indiana, or Glendale, Arizona, for the national championship, Julia was always there to follow the action.
“All of a sudden you hear the audience going wild and you think, ‘Oh, yes, my mom’s on the screen,'” Eddie said. WISH TV in May 2023.
While Julia enjoys watching her son and his team perform, she also seems to enjoy being in the spotlight.
“Look, I have a clapping octopus,” Julia joked to WISH TV, “so maybe it’s a little extreme. … I just want people to know that there’s love in the audience.”
In addition to cheering on the team during games, Julia has become an integral part of the Purdue program, providing the team with nutritious homemade dinners and sharing home-grown honey from several beehives.
Julia also said she volunteers at food banks and dog shelters in the West Lafayette area.
“We wanted to give back to the community that had been so great to Zach,” Julia said.
