"Bro what lmao" "Hell yeah" - Fans had mixed reactions to Purdue star Zach Edey throwing first pitch in Cubs vs. Padres matchup

College sports fans had mixed reactions when Purdue Boilermakers star and back-to-back national college player of the year Zach Edey took the mound to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Chicago Cubs' game against the San Diego Padres on Monday night.

The seven-foot-four Canadian athlete, who helped lead the Boilermakers to the NCAA final this past season, once played baseball at the prep level. He now displayed his throwing skills at the fabled Wrigley field.

Edey's day at the Cubs' home field drew mixed reactions from fans on social media, with one user becoming ecstatic upon seeing the big man throw out the pitch.

"Hell yeah," the fan tweeted.

Another fan couldn't contain his amusement upon seeing Edey pitch.

"Bro what lmao," the user posted on X.

However, some disgruntled fans expressed unhappiness upon seeing Edey on the mound.

"This is worse than Justin Steele getting hurt," the fan wrote.

"Had Zach edey out before Terrence Shannon jr. What a disgrace of an organization," another user tweeted.

Other fans speculated about Edey's potential landing spot in the 2024 NBA Draft with many predicting he might get picked by the Chicago Bulls.

"Zach to the Bulls?," one user asked.

"To The Bulls Confirmed," another fan added,

The Bulls own a first-round pick in the annual draft that they can use to pick the athlete. However, the team has a 2.0% chance of winning the Draft Lottery scheduled on May 12, 8:30pm in Chicago.

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Zach Edey moving up in mock drafts before the NBA Draft combine begins

Purdue's Zach Edey has moved up in NBA mock drafts before the draft combine begins.

The Toronto-born Zach Edey is moving up in various mock drafts before the NBA Draft combine starts.

HoopsHype had him climbing to 21st overall from 27th in their previous mock draft. He peaked at 15th in NBA mock draft boards compiled by the website for its latest post.

Edey was ranked behind Baylor's Yves Missi (ranked 18th), Duke's Kyle Filipowski (15th) and UConn Donovan Clingan (sixth). The website compiled 10 mock drafts from various basketball sites and asked some NBA executives and scouts regarding the prospects.

Back-to-back national champion coach Dan Hurley of UConn backed up the center in one episode of The Herd, describing him as a special player:

"The kid’s a special player. Special players, when they go to the next level, add new skills quickly. I think he’s going to get to the NBA and increase his range in his shooting, his passing, and dribbling, and he’ll adapt. That’s what special players do."

This past season, Edey averaged 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 2.0 assists per game for Purdue, who lost to Hurley's UConn in the national championship.