Not Illini related, but despite some baggage, AJ Casey to SLU. Avila, Swope, Casey, Jimmerson... Shertz wants a team to outscore any Play Station 5 team.
toucheSo's his seat !!
Hmm any link to him entering the portal? While it's expected, that would still be significant news. And both Antigua and Anderson have connections to him.As many of you have stated, 6'6" 210 lbs. SF/Wing David Jones of Memphis (now in the portal) would be a HUGE pickup for the Illini. He averaged 21.8/7.6/1.8 this past season, shooting 45.9/38.0/79.7. He may be the best (and only?) high volume scorer presently in the portal. But can Illinois compete with (or beat?) the NIL offers that Jones will undoubtedly be receiving? Does anyone have info on how much it would "cost" to add David Jones from the transfer portal? Do either Antigua or Anderson have any connections with Jones?
After watching this tape, to me, it looks like he had a good game against UT-Chat. I need more than 1 game to convince me he will be more than a catch and shoot guy in the Big Ten.After watching this tape of Ben, I'M more enthused. Other tapes show him as exclusively a catch and shoot this guy. This one shows a more versatile guy. Might as well get him.
TA recruited Jones to DePaul as a prep. Antigua has been involved with the Dominican National team, of which Jones was a member on the under 17 club back in 2018.As many of you have stated, 6'6" 210 lbs. SF/Wing David Jones of Memphis (now in the portal) would be a HUGE pickup for the Illini. He averaged 21.8/7.6/1.8 this past season, shooting 45.9/38.0/79.7. He may be the best (and only?) high volume scorer presently in the portal. But can Illinois compete with (or beat?) the NIL offers that Jones will undoubtedly be receiving? Does anyone have info on how much it would "cost" to add David Jones from the transfer portal? Do either Antigua or Anderson have any connections with Jones?
5 guys French Fries are so overrated. Give me Wendy's fries, but with Chick-fil-A sauce all day long.
It really, really is!So's his seat !!
St JohnsThe Illini obviously need SHOOTERS from the transfer portal. Shooters that can also handle the ball would be even better. I haven't noticed anyone mention 6'5" 185 lbs. Arkansas guard Khalif Battle as a possible transfer to Illinois. He averaged 14.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg, and 1.3 apg last season for the Razorbacks. He shot 40.6% from the field, including 35.3% 0n 3s, and 87.3% from the line. More importantly, he exploded in the last 8 games of the Arkansas season, scoring at least 18 points each game, with a couple of 30+ point games. Two other players that I think the Illini should be pursuing are Jalen Blackmon and Javon Small. Blackmon is a 6'3" 180 lbs. guard from Stetson. He averaged 21.3/2.9/1.9 for Stetson this past season, shooting 42.8% from the field (38.1% on 3s) and 90.7% from the line. I could see Blackmon start and thrive for Illinois at the 2 guard spot alongside point guard Kylan Boswell. I also really like 6'3" 195 lbs. PG/CG Javon Small of Oklahoma State. Last season, Small averaged 15.1/4.7/4.1 for OSU, shooting 44.1% from the field (37.4% on 3s) and 86.6% from the line. Small could start at SG next season, while also serving as the backup PG. I think that Boswell and Small could play together very well, in a style reminiscent of the Deron Williams/Dee Brown pairing of two PGs in the same starting lineup. Does anyone know if Illinois is recruiting these guards that are in the transfer portal? We need shooters/scorers asap!
I think you meant “seat”, right??Woodson's grill at IU is quite a bit hotter than Underwood's
Uh… Dain Dainja ring a bell?When's the last time a project big worked for us? I guess you could say Maverick Morgan & Giorgi would the only one's that come to mind semi recently. Mike Davis a while ago. They're usually not a very high hit rate.
He is currently using the smoker. just takes longer.The “Brad’s cooking” rhetoric has died down
Ahem.Good stuff, I didn't know where to go looking for that.
The word "Domask" appears nowhere in the litany of replies that we were fine at point guard.
The statement that Ty Rodgers could not play that role was 100% correct. The statement that Justin Harmon couldn't either and wasn't really good enough to be a major contributor was also 100% correct.
I feel like this statement I made in that thread puts it in a sensible light:
"The GOOD news is that because this roster is very good in terms of passing up and down the lineup, plus a higher degree of familiarity with each other and the system, the demands on that PG position are not super high. We don't need some master orchestrator there. But we do need a point guard.
I would not be shocked if one of DGL, Sincere, Moretti or Harmon (in that order) turns out to give us just enough to allow the strength of the rest of the roster to shine through and avoid a disastrous mess. I would be shocked if a Rodgers, TSJ, Domask, Hawkins, Dainja type lineup is viable. We're gonna look like we did against Arkansas when we couldn't run anything and real guards were just taking the ball away from us at will."
We were all underrating Guerrier, especially his ability to make Hawkins a viable 5 in a 5 out system.
But no one foresaw Domask as a functional Big Ten point guard, no poster, not Domask himself, not Underwood himself. The construction of that roster DID fail, we put all of our eggs in the RayJ basket and got caught too late to recover when that fell apart.
We got a miracle, a miracle that only great coaching and strategic flexibility (plus a super high underlying talent level) could unlock, but a miracle all the same. We won't need a miracle this time around, at least we shouldn't. It's a bad idea to rely on them.
I dunno, I don't really like tooting my own horn on this, and my analysis in that thread led to objectively incorrect conclusions. But the analysis was also more sound than anyone who disagreed. I am not ashamed of anything wrote there.
(Unlike, by way of counterexample, being a Lovie believer way, way longer than I should have been. That was just a failure to look at what was right in front of my face.)
I'd also be curious to see Miami transfer's track records. Larranaga is a helluva coach.Not Illini related, but despite some baggage, AJ Casey to SLU. Avila, Swope, Casey, Jimmerson... Shertz wants a team to outscore any Play Station 5 team.
I like Hum as a nickname about us much as I liked Chet.Pairing Ugonna with Hum would allow Hum's offense to shine while greatly reducing the issues with Hum's interior defense.
Get David Jones also and you can see the blueprint -- surround a dominant rim protector with premier offense.
It's UConn #2, and we could win a national title.
It's been pretty consistently mentioned here before that he would basically be our number 1 target if he enters the portal, which he has not as of yet.In other news…paging insiders: do we have a legit shot at David Jones?
In other news…paging insiders: do we have a legit shot at David Jones?
As of this moment, he is not in the portal.As many of you have stated, 6'6" 210 lbs. SF/Wing David Jones of Memphis (now in the portal) would be a HUGE pickup for the Illini. He averaged 21.8/7.6/1.8 this past season, shooting 45.9/38.0/79.7. He may be the best (and only?) high volume scorer presently in the portal. But can Illinois compete with (or beat?) the NIL offers that Jones will undoubtedly be receiving? Does anyone have info on how much it would "cost" to add David Jones from the transfer portal? Do either Antigua or Anderson have any connections with Jones?
Full credit, that was a great take.Ahem.
Post in thread 'Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread'
https://www.illinoisloyalty.com/post/illinois-hoops-recruiting-thread.31564/post-1917685
I didn’t say he would be our PG, but as stated, his passing was a reason to believe we would be fine initiating offense and to not think the roster construction would “fail.”
People are going to pull receipts on you when you simultaneously claim your “analysis was more sound than anyone who disagreed” while also acknowledging you came to the incorrect conclusions. That is just a flat out wild statement to make.
Geez, you want me to wait that long for Mor Seck(s)?!Not sure how much eligibility Mor Seck has, but nothing wrong with contacting him now to be better positioned for when the kid enters portal after next season. Start building relationship now.
Throw in the "mystery wing" (and possibly "mystery big") that insiders have hinted about. But May 1st is rapidly approaching, so ...Is it fair to characterize it as:
Humrichous - feel good, we’re the favorite expecting to lock it up after the visit
David Jones - we have a good chance if we can lure him into the portal but Penny feels confident about keeping him at Memphis (said 70% in interview last week)
Onyenso - will take a shot and in the mix, but tough competition against Arkansas Louisville Alabama Xavier and others
It may have something to do with OA being on board now - maybe he has a different approach to what he wants people to know