A high upside wing-forward that has his best basketball ahead of him, Aaron Wheeler came to a final decision with his college recruitment on Monday. After visiting Purdue over the weekend, a trip that was his first official visit taken, the 6-foot-7 senior came off the board by pledging his verbal to the Big 10 program.

While the recruiting process has fluctuated a bit over the past few years, the recent several weeks have brought great attention to Wheeler. Among those that had begun to ramp up their pursuit in the versatile forward were the likes of Northwestern, Arkansas, and Pitt, yet Purdue, landing the first official visit, was enough to lead to a college commitment.

A long bodied small forward that displays excellent potential as a long-term piece to build around in the coming years, the word potential has been tossed around a good amount with the Rhode Island native. While strength gain is in order and so is consistent production on the playing floor, the versatility and developed ball skills from the Brewster Academy product is already in tow making the intriguing prospect an excellent pick-up for Matt Painter’s bunch this fall.

In the need to replace Vince Edwards in the coming years, the 6-foot-7 star combo forward on the Boilermakers roster at the current moment, Wheeler should be someone that can learn the ropes and fill the shoes of the NBA prospect, something that the staff at Purdue sold him on right off the bat. "They think that I can fit right into the role that Vince Edwards plays if he is to leave for the (NBA) draft," Wheeler stated. The Mass Rivals product can shoot the outside jumper from off the catch, has sneaky athleticism at the basket on the hard drive to the cup, but can sit down and defend various spots within the half-court setting.

The second commitment in the 2017 class, Wheeler joins 7-foot-2 center Matt Haarms in West Lafayette next fall, both of whom fit needs on Purdue’s roster, creating a solid duo headed to an early signing next month.