Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#502      
Birdus
DReq said:
There are folks on this forum who would be such fun to negotiate against. So much panic and despair. So little staying power. That is not everyone but I hope a few of you have no connection with any sort of negotiation process.

I am enjoying this ride and look forward to results for us all to have names and faces for this new group. And thanks to the insiders for sharing what you can when you can. It makes the ride more fun.
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Good point. I think it's called immaturity. Some of these people live in their parents basement and don't even have a job. Disappointment sucks but that's just the way life is. That being said, I still think the kid will commit.
 
#503      
New Creation
RichardKeenesCousin said:
View attachment 42025
Is this real?
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From Grok:

This image appears to be a digitally created or manipulated photo rather than a real one. Several elements suggest this:


  1. Facial Features and Expressions: The faces have a slightly unnatural look, with expressions that seem overly exaggerated or stiff, which is common in AI-generated or digitally altered images.
  2. Lighting and Shadows: The lighting on the individuals and their surroundings doesn’t seem entirely consistent. The shadows and highlights on their faces and clothing don’t perfectly match the natural lighting one would expect in a real outdoor setting.
  3. Background and Details: The background, while detailed, has a slightly blurred or artificial quality, often seen in generated images. The texture of the clothing and the way the hands hold the wine glasses also have a slightly uncanny, computer-generated feel.
  4. Overall Composition: The overall composition, including the way the two individuals are posed and the symmetry of the scene, feels more like a staged digital creation than a candid photograph.

While I can’t definitively confirm without a reverse image search or metadata analysis (which I can offer to do if you’d like), based on visual cues alone, this image is likely not a real photograph but rather a digitally created or manipulated one.
 
#504      
Illini IndyCar Fan
FI_8905 said:
Regardless of the outcome with Andrej, one of the lessons learned should be that one-sided, “inside” information is often incomplete.

While agents have certainly been at the forefront of portal madness, in this specific case it’s the player who is taking his time and weighing everything in front of him. Not just the money.
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Honestly, a better takeaway would be that perhaps the best approach really is to log off more often and simply wait to react to confirmed news when it breaks. People are investing too much energy in daily speculation and getting frustrated when things don't turn out as anticipated. Bad expectation management.
 
#506      
Altuve27
FI_8905 said:
Regardless of the outcome with Andrej, one of the lessons learned should be that one-sided, “inside” information is often incomplete.

While agents have certainly been at the forefront of portal madness, in this specific case it’s the player who is taking his time and weighing everything in front of him. Not just the money.
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Ok. I’m not going to hold you to it or show up at your house demanding answers… What do YOU think happens here?

Thanks in advance, as always. :)
 
#507      
mysterio2525
FI_8905 said:
If he chooses UNC you’ll hear “Illinois had a deal, he said he was coming, then he backed out”. Newest villain.
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There is a flip side to that coin. Illinois was in the lead, he took his time, a late push by the blue bloods, but in the end he took the best deal and the most upside for himself. Illinois legend!
 
#511      
BashCtIllini
FI_8905 said:
If he chooses UNC you’ll hear “Illinois had a deal, he said he was coming, then he backed out”. Newest villain.
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well it's real simple. I don't care how optimistic you are, I don't care what you heard. The fact that he visited and a week later he still hasn't committed can be viewed as nothing but a negative. Clearly he didn't think our offer was enough and he's out looking for more. We may end up landing him, but my guess would be we had to up our original bid to do it.
 
#512      
HensonHall71
FI_8905 said:
Regardless of the outcome with Andrej, one of the lessons learned should be that one-sided, “inside” information is often incomplete.
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I don’t think that is a lesson at all. Isn’t that obvious to the most casual observer that an insider by definition is giving us what information the staff or player’s inner circle is getting and nothing more? Hearing about who they are going after vs not and when there is mutual interest and when there is a deal in place is great info to know!

There are lots of things not under the staff’s control, so why shoot the messenger if a recruit goes in a different direction?
 
#513      
Serious Late
GoodePodzMelendez said:
That what Champaign is missing, a Kolache shop. When I lived in Dallas we had a great Kolache shop in Richardson on Central and it was the bomb. We need one.
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St. Louis Kolache Co. is a must stop breakfast destination for my family every time we are down that way. Would be awesome to get one in Champaign!
 
#514      
Illini2010-11
FI_8905 said:
Regardless of the outcome with Andrej, one of the lessons learned should be that one-sided, “inside” information is often incomplete.

While agents have certainly been at the forefront of portal madness, in this specific case it’s the player who is taking his time and weighing everything in front of him. Not just the money.
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I am fine with this. It is a very important decision for this young man. It is actually refreshing to see the player taking charge (not the agent/handlers).

However, if he does take less money to go to UNC, then there is a larger underlying issue at play, as it is not just money leading key players to go elsewhere.

I prefer to remain optimistic for now.
 
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#516      
sacraig
LvilleILL1 said:
Final decision has been made privately from what I heard. Graphic could be released at any time, not even going to guess a timeline at this point. Shouldn't go past Tuesday worse case is what I will say. Pretty confident it's us.

Small chance he picks UNC, but we have way more things working in our favor right now.
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sci-fi disney GIF by MANGOTEETH
 
#519      
BoiseBaller
Dee_4_Three_83 said:
Is there any indication that we would lose due to the financials? Everything I have seen from insiders has indicated we have the largest offer with room to increase. I think if we lose this recruiting battle, it will be because AS feels he has found a better fit with another suitor. The good news is, it seems like our other targets are waiting to see what he does.
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We've been outbid for multiple recruits already this offseason.
 
#524      
Bootheel Illini
Whatever the $$$s, players have to be motivated from within to "be all in" wherever they decide to play. Better to have him decide he does not want to be an Illini now rather than midseason. It is concerning that his in person visit did not move the needle for him enough to commit at that time. If he had reservations after his visit that made him want to keep looking, he just might not see Illinois as a good fit for him. So throwing more $$$ at him might get him to come, but not get him to be totally committed to play.
 
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