Purdue's Hummel fulfills dream

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Robbie Hummel had to wait an awfully long time to realize his dream – and that was just on Thursday.

Hummel spoke earlier this month of dreaming about becoming an NBA player since he first played biddy ball as a youngster in Valparaiso. The former Purdue standout had to spend four-plus hours waiting for his name to be called during Thursday’s NBA Draft, but he finally did when Minnesota selected him with the 58th (second round) selection.

“When you talk about Robbie Hummel,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said in a release. “You talk about a skilled, hard-working guy who also has all the intangibles it takes to be successful in the NBA.”

Hummel ended up being the second small forward that the Timberwolves had added this week. Minnesota traded for Houston forward Chase Budinger on Wednesday.

Hummel is the 44th Purdue player to be drafted by an NBA franchise and third in two seasons. A year ago, Boilermakers JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore were selected by Boston.

“Robbie did a great job of keeping his focus throughout the pre-draft process,” Painter said. “It’s clear that his best basketball is ahead of him.”

Hummel led Purdue with averages of 16.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in 2011-12, both career highs that ranked fourth in the Big Ten. His 1.2 blocks per game as a senior also represented a career best and rated sixth in the conference.

He was named a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2012 for the third time in his career, making him one of just 18 players in league history to earn that distinction. He is also one of just three Purdue players, along with Moore and Paul Hoffman, to garner All-Big Ten honors in each of his four seasons.

“I have no doubt he’ll give everything he has to be a great representative of the Timberwolves, both on the court and off,” Painter said.

Hummel finished his career ranked ninth in Purdue history with 1,772 points, tied for fourth with 862 rebounds, fourth with 216 three-point field goals and seventh with 112 blocks. He is the only player in Purdue history to accrue 1,700 points, 850 rebounds, 250 assists, 125 steals and 100 blocks in his career.

Tdavis@news-sentinel.com