Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

[PepeSilvia]

Okay, here we go again. What would you think about the following 14-player roster in the 25-26 season? Mid-pack in the Big Ten, or contending for the title? Just making the NCAA Tournament, or making it to the second weekend?

Kylan Boswell, Samage Teel, Jason Lee
Cedric Coward, Adam Miller, Keaton Wagler
Dame Sarr, Ty Rodgers, Jake Davis
David Mirkovic, Ben Humrichous, Jason Jakstys
Tomislav Ivisic, Zvonimir Ivisic

It's very similar to the first roster that I proposed in an earlier post. Except that I just had a feeling that Sarr would end up not signing with the Illini, and the thought that the Illini would not be able to afford to sign Cedric Coward in a bidding war. So, I subbed in Andrej Stojakovic and Kennard Davis Jr respectively. I wonder what dollar amount Coward will eventually get from a school for his transfer. And I wonder how that figure compares with how much Stojakovic will get. With how much K Davis will get. Coward was at Washington State this past season. It's rumored that Washington might be leading for his transfer. It could also be difficult to get Coward to leave the West Coast.

As an aside, I think people are misjudging how good Kennard Davis was this past season for SIU, how much better he could be in a system like that of Illinois, one in which he'd be surrounded with better, more athletic players.

I mean I think that's a roster that could win the Big10 and get a 1 or 2 seed.

I do like Kennard Davis though and you would have an even better team if you could swap him for Miller(no clue if they will take similar amounts).

 

[STLini25]

No kidding. You get Sarr and Coward and the sky is the limit (assuming luck with injuries).

What are your expectations?

 

[Wrightandjohnstreet]

Definitely not a lock. Could go NBA if he can make the leap. If not, Duke is heavily interested as well

It was mentioned a long while ago that Sarr isn’t a lock to start. I assume that isn’t the case anymore? Hard to imagine he isn’t starting after all this recruitment and our roster

 

[illinoispeak]

Th

43% last year which is more relavent. , At LSU he took an avg of 7 a game and they were poor shots and bombs. Miller will get good looks on this team surrounded by the twins that can also shoot he may not shoot 43% but I wouldn't bet against him being at 40 or better and possibly our best 3 pt shooter with these guys.

Thats what they said about Ben when he was shooting 40% at a lesser school.

 

[Wrightandjohnstreet]

Agree. Sarr is talented but a 19 year old with no college experience is hard to trust and likely inconsistent. No TSJ, Ayo or even Frazier

If it's one, and that's Sarr, I don't think that's really eclipsing this prior year.

 

[DevILLDawg]

Adam Miller can reunite with his former teammate (now Offensive Coordinator) Tyler Underwood. What a time for college basketball.

Not to mention OA who coached him for his freshmen season. Left for 3 years, came back to Illinois for a season...and will still get a chance to coach him next season.

Get old..

 

[Wrightandjohnstreet]

fringe top 25 roster at best. definitely wouldn't be ranked preseason though

That would be a top 25 team for sure, but they will add three more pieces. It kinda depends on the timeline. If they can get Miller and a big piece in the next couple of weeks, you can save money for Sarr if he decides later. If you wait and see someone like Sarr later, they might lock up Miller along with a solid but nothing insanely high priced guy plus Sarr. Regardless they will add three more, maybe 4 if Ben doesn't come back (think he will).

 

[Deacon05]

There’s smoke of the Irvin’s trying to block Millers return to Illini. But until we hear it from @Indy Illini Fan it’s just a rumor

Why would they do that? And how would they actually do that?

 

[phats22]

Damonte says hey

yes he does

 

[Combo]

What are your expectations?

My expectations are that we won't get both Sarr and Coward.

 

[TAK15illini]

fringe top 25 roster at best. definitely wouldn't be ranked preseason though

You realize, Florida was ranked 21st in October of 2024. I'm not sure there is a lot of value placed in pre-season rankings. BTW - KU was #1

 

[PleaseMakeABowlGame]

ur expectation last yr was that we had no shot at riley.

 

[WhiteHorseWings]

fringe top 25 roster at best. definitely wouldn't be ranked preseason though

Luckily we don’t care about rankings

 

[chrisRunner7]

In advance, a sincere thank you to whomever can answer this question with credibility. Do players, such as Ty and JJ who both redshirted, along with the two incoming frosh who may or may not see the floor next season, typically get a small NIL contract, like 10-20 grand? Or whatever?

With absolutely below zero credibility:

Given the NIL numbers that have really ballooned this year, wouldn't you think our 4* freshman are getting a minimum of... oh, I don't know, $80K to $150K? You can't give a player a million bucks and give a 4* freshman $20K.

No clue on JJ. Ty getting way more than any of them, I would have thought a minimum of $400K with the current inflation.

 

[derrick6]

Super happy for the kid. He's a good kid. I think that he's going to be a G-Leaguer for an entire season and may never be a reliable PG given some limitations and he's a questionable 2 given where he's currently at shooting, but he's getting generational, guaranteed money and you don't mess with that.

I truly hope that whoever develops him is committed to bringing him along slowly and they give him a real chance for success. He needs to be getting A LOT of PT in the G-League from the get go.

I think he will grow. Hopefully he finds the right team and situation.

 

[phats22]

Th

Thats what they said about Ben when he was shooting 40% at a lesser school.

um, i think U of I ->LSU->ASU represents much higher level of competition than Huntington U -> Evansville

 

[STLini25]

My expectations are that we won't get both Sarr and Coward.

Yeah probably a pretty small chance.

 

[Joel Goodson]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1911958674211303606

 

[chrisRunner7]

So was Chin Coleman the lead recruiter for Adam Miller back in the day? I can't remember but I saw Arkansas reached out.

I have a strong belief that Adam Miller is starting if he comes here. Fifth year player, good defender, good shooter in the Big 12, started every game with Brad.

Some folks resist that because they want a home run, sure-fire star transfer (plus Sarr) but there's no guarantee that some 17 ppg guard from a mid-major is going to be any better than Miller next year. I think the only way he's not starting is if Ty beats him out for a spot.

 

[Govoner Vaugn Fan]

Damonte shot 54.7% from 3 that season…

Sure, he only shot 2-3 per game, but he stuck to his role.

Damonte could make shots, he hesitated take shots, though.

 

[illinoispeak]

um, i think U of I ->LSU->ASU represents much higher level of competition than Huntington U -> Evansville

Well Bens 38%,42% is a higher level of shooting compared to Adams 31%,32%,34%.

But maybe a better example would be Damonte shooting 54% then regressing back to his 32%.

 

[IlliniFan42]

So was Chin Coleman the lead recruiter for Adam Miller back in the day? I can't remember but I saw Arkansas reached out.

I have a strong belief that Adam Miller is starting if he comes here. Fifth year player, good defender, good shooter in the Big 12, started every game with Brad.

Some folks resist that because they want a home run, sure-fire star transfer (plus Sarr) but there's no guarantee that some 17 ppg guard from a mid-major is going to be any better than Miller next year. I think the only way he's not starting is if Ty beats him out for a spot.

If he's starting then we failed this offseason. Honestly think the same about Ty, but maybe that means we already failed.

 

[Rez]

Except it's not free. Every dollar you spend on the 9th guy isn't spent towards a player who could be a starter. IMO spending on the 9th guy is raising the floor, while focusing spending on the top guys is raising the ceiling. I'd much rather spend on ceiling.

Didnt say it was free...but sure. I would too. Just better hope your top 7 stays perfectly healthy all year if the rest after that falls off a cliff skill wise. Maybe last year raising the floor when Ivisic and KJ were hurt a couple more wins instead of losses and Illinois gets a 4/5 seed and a better chance at a deeper run..I get it roster constuction is tricky. Just was saying depth doesnt hurt. And as far a people leaving.? I mean in this day and age of the transfer portal if your 7th 8th guy is going to leave after the season so be it IMO. Im just worried about what's best for the next season at this point as long as it's free agency at the end of every year. 2026-2027 who knows.

 

[DevILLDawg]

If he's starting then we failed this offseason. Honestly think the same about Ty, but maybe that means we already failed.

That's wild to say about an overall 1 seed starter and an Elite 8 starter.

I'd hesitate to throw such negativity towards this offseason. We had alot of high end talent last year but we were short on dude's who gave a about Illinois basketball.

Sign me up for Ace starting (if he wins it) and Ty getting 20+ minutes a game.

 

[Combo]

If he's starting then we failed this offseason. Honestly think the same about Ty, but maybe that means we already failed.

If we add any one of Sarr, Coward, or Watkins (plus Adam), it's a very successful offseason. If you think we should get more than that, I hope you're making a substantial contribution to NIL.

I'd love to get two of the first three I mentioned, but it's quite unlikely and not doing so certainly wouldn't make the offseason a failure.