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Zach Edey initially made a name for himself at Purdue with the help of the 7’4″ frame that helped make the Boilermakers a force to be reckoned with during his time there. However, he wasn’t able to leverage his college fame to wriggle his way out of the citation he received for reckless driving in the vicinity of his alma mater after being pulled over in an unexpectedly run-of-the-mill SUV.
Basketball is a pretty big deal in the state of Indiana, and while Purdue has historically played second fiddle to the flagship university in Bloomington, the tides have started to turn over the past couple of decades.
That shift was accelerated when Zach Edey arrived in West Lafayette for his freshman season in 2020, as the 7’4″ Canadian export showed plenty of promise during his inaugural campaign before transforming into one of the most formidable big men in the country as an upperclassman.
Purdue punched its ticket to March Madness during all four years of the Edey Era, a run where they had two first-round exits (including the stunning loss to Fairleigh Dickinson as a one-seed in 2023), lost in the Sweet Sixteen, and fell to UConn in the one-sided national championship in 2024.
That marked Edey’s last game as a Boilermaker, as he decided to declare for the NBA Draft despite having one remaining year of eligibility.
Plenty of people were skeptical that his style of play would translate to the next level, but that didn’t prevent the Grizzlies from drafting him with the ninth overall pick ahead of a respectable rookie season where he managed to hold his own while averaging 9.2 points and 8.3 rebounds.
Memphis inked Edey to a four-year deal worth over $26 million, but it doesn’t appear he decided to splurge when it came to picking out a vehicle that’s capable of comfortably accommodating his oversized frame.
According to the Lafayette Journal & Courier, Edey was pulled over on a highway just outside of Lafayette on May 1st and was cited with reckless driving after a state trooper allegedly clocked him traveling at 101 MPH in a 55 MPH zone.
Edey, who reportedly told the officer he sped up to pass another car, was behind the wheel of a Kia Sorento, which is presumably roomy enough for the big man but definitely not near the top of the list of the vehicles I would have expected him to opt for (last year’s model retailed for between $31,000 and a little more than $47,000).
He isn’t the only professional athlete who’s recently been charged for traveling at exactly 101 MPH, as Shedeur Sanders met the same fate while piloting his Dodge TRX (which starts at over $100K) in Ohio earlier this week.
Edey is slated to appear in court to answer to the misdemeanor charge on Monday, while Sanders has the option to do the same on July 3rd.