In an odd way, I believe that the unfortunate absence of TSJ for several games has resulted in an even stronger, tougher, more resilient Illini team now that he has rejoined the fold. Several players embraced their expanded roles and increased defensive, scoring, and rebounding responsibilities and skills in recent games. The growth of this team is noticeable. It was refreshing to see how his teammates celebrated TSJ's return, and how TSJ quickly began to reintegrate himself into the flow of the game, and adjust to the fact that others are there to help him carry the load. We now have a deeper rotation of skilled players on both offense and defense that will be a nightmare for other teams to game plan against as the season gets tougher. By far, the best team of the Underwood era.