Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#726      
CleverHandle1
LvilleILL1 said:
Massive commitment!!

Here is what happened to the best of my understanding:

Andrej's visit was fantastic. At the end of the visit, he verbally committed to the staff in some form. The staff's read off of it was that an announcement was imminent, but that obviously did not happen. Over the last few days, tons of schools tried to call and pry him off of his verbal to Illinois. Obviously, in this day and age, nothing is official until it's public.

I do think he took the time to think through his options. Might have felt he got caught in the high of his visit, and he did hear other schools out. However, like I said the past few days, not much changed overall in this recruitment. Illinois was always the leader throughout the entire time from the minute he hit the portal.

I think this was a recruitment where certain schools tried to create more buzz/drama that was not really there to get rid of the Illinois momentum.

Brad and OA need to be praised for this one. Prying this kid off of the west coast was no easy feat. Andrej loves the sell that the staff gave to him. The opportunity to play with the Ivisic brothers up front along with two guards like Kylan and Petrovic is going to open up so much for him. He hasn't been able to play with these level of players in college yet.

Peja LOVED Brad from what I heard. That played as big of a deal as any in this recruitment imo.

The staff went away from Sarr once they got word that Andrej was 100% hitting the portal. Sarr's price also played a role in that choice/his NBA interest, but I alluded to the mystery man a couple weeks before he hit the portal. People can say pivot this pivot that etc, but this was one of if not their top target this offseason.

I will go into what they might add in the next post if they add any more, but I think we have a legit top 15 team right now. This team should be way more consistent next year, has lots of talent and size. I think the ceiling will depend on a couple of different guys developing/taking jumps.
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Great stuff, Lville1! In the end, he stuck with the Illini.

This kid may be the real deal, and it reads like he's going to give it his all to get this team far into the tournament.
 
#727      
OrangeKrush1981
PleaseMakeABowlGame said:
who's better petrovic or fland? just a hypothetical question.
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Context is critical. So for us, I think: Petrovic is the much better fit.

That is for next season.

But in addition, and importantly, there is a chance that Petrovic could come back for a second year. I am not so sure Fland might, for one reason or another, end up in that situation. I know, Petrovic might not return either. But I think he is the more likely returner. And in this day and age, returning a (likely) starter is a big step toward a very successful season.
 
#728      
PepeSilvia
PleaseMakeABowlGame said:
who's better petrovic or fland? just a hypothetical question.
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In a vacuum it's Fland no question. Very explosive and extremely talented player.

But it's not a vacuum and team/roster fit matters. I'd argue that Petrovic as a facilitator is a better fit on the Illini with a bunch of different guys that can score.

Petrovic is also a 22 year old guy that has been playing professionally while Fland hasn't turned 19 yet.

I think Petrovic could be a bit like Sean Pedulla was this year but with less of a need to score the ball(lack of talent at Virginia Tech and consistent scoring options at Ole Miss this year forced Pedulla into more of a scoring role for his career then I think he would've been had he played with more talent).
 
#730      
CrazyIlliniLady
I remember your mysterious comments before AS entered the portal, and it's been a great roller coaster ride since then. Thanks for all interesting details, and for talking us off the ledge.
 
#732      
CleverHandle1
LvilleILL1 said:
In terms of what they may add, I think one more is possible:

I put the Jovic video out there earlier. There is legit interest from both parties, but Illinois has to balance a couple of things:

The small small smalll chance Will decides to come back. Again, very tiny, but there is a scenario where it could happen. Very unlikely though.

Do they want to add an athletic 4 like Jovic or a backup guard that can knock down shots/defend for that lost spot? If it's a guard it would either be a euro or a cheaper portal guy. Have to find the right fit there.

Right now we are looking at (It's April and how guys perform will change this):

Petrovic (30 minutes), Kylan (5 minutes)
Kylan (30 minutes), Lee/Ty (5 minutes)
Andrej (33 minutes) Ty (7 minutes)
Mirkovic (15 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes) Ty (5 minutes) Ben (10 minutes)
Tomi (30 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes)

Wagler, Lee, Jake, and JJ as deeper rotation guys.


Again this is a pure guess on April 28th. Like I said, chance to add one more.
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As you typed, it's very early, but what about the defense? You think they can improve from last year? Rebounding was a strength last year.

I know Ty will help, but creating some TO's will go a long way.
 
#734      
dwpittman
illiniE said:
But Uncle Rico never scored 4 touchdowns in game. Throwing a ball over a mountain wins nothing. Al Bundy is much better at football than uncle Rico.
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And Ed O'Neill had a brief pro football career himself. I think just training camp, but still impressive.
 
#735      
IlliniFan42
LvilleILL1 said:
In terms of what they may add, I think one more is possible:

I put the Jovic video out there earlier. There is legit interest from both parties, but Illinois has to balance a couple of things:

The small small smalll chance Will decides to come back. Again, very tiny, but there is a scenario where it could happen. Very unlikely though.

Do they want to add an athletic 4 like Jovic or a backup guard that can knock down shots/defend for that lost spot? If it's a guard it would either be a euro or a cheaper portal guy. Have to find the right fit there.

Right now we are looking at (It's April and how guys perform will change this):

Petrovic (30 minutes), Kylan (5 minutes)
Kylan (30 minutes), Lee/Ty (5 minutes)
Andrej (33 minutes) Ty (7 minutes)
Mirkovic (15 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes) Ty (5 minutes) Ben (10 minutes)
Tomi (30 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes)

Wagler, Lee, Jake, and JJ as deeper rotation guys.


Again this is a pure guess on April 28th. Like I said, chance to add one more.
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Missing five minutes in the 1-spot (and the 2-spot if that 5 minutes is Lee/Ty combined). I'd also use 30 minutes as the maximum for a hypothetical even though players could go higher, I just wouldn't plan on Kylan playing 35 minutes a game with this roster when writing an initial blueprint.
 
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#736      
LvilleILL1
CleverHandle1 said:
As you typed, it's very early, but what about the defense? You think they can improve from last year? Rebounding was a strength last year.

I know Ty will help, but creating some TO's will go a long way.
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That's gonna be a huge focus. Andrej actually talked about it in his interview with ESPN today:

"I'm confident we can become one of the best offensive teams in the country, but it's going to take a lot defensively," Stojakovic said. "We have to hone in on the little stuff. It's going to start with the guards, [we] have to set a tone that's going to maybe be surprising to some people. We're ready to surprise people defensively and I think we're going to do great things."
 
#737      
Illiniam1984
There is a possibility the staff will add one more…but the roster is pretty much shaping up. Just look at the roster right now and enjoy it…almost time for assistant coach talk. 😎
 
#738      
phats22
LvilleILL1 said:
Massive commitment!!

Here is what happened to the best of my understanding:

Andrej's visit was fantastic. At the end of the visit, he verbally committed to the staff in some form. The staff's read off of it was that an announcement was imminent, but that obviously did not happen. Over the last few days, tons of schools tried to call and pry him off of his verbal to Illinois. Obviously, in this day and age, nothing is official until it's public.

I do think he took the time to think through his options. Might have felt he got caught in the high of his visit, and he did hear other schools out. However, like I said the past few days, not much changed overall in this recruitment. Illinois was always the leader throughout the entire time from the minute he hit the portal.

I think this was a recruitment where certain schools tried to create more buzz/drama that was not really there to get rid of the Illinois momentum.

Brad and OA need to be praised for this one. Prying this kid off of the west coast was no easy feat. Andrej loves the sell that the staff gave to him. The opportunity to play with the Ivisic brothers up front along with two guards like Kylan and Petrovic is going to open up so much for him. He hasn't been able to play with these level of players in college yet.

Peja LOVED Brad from what I heard. That played as big of a deal as any in this recruitment imo.

The staff went away from Sarr once they got word that Andrej was 100% hitting the portal. Sarr's price also played a role in that choice/his NBA interest, but I alluded to the mystery man a couple weeks before he hit the portal. People can say pivot this pivot that etc, but this was one of if not their top target this offseason.

I will go into what they might add in the next post if they add any more, but I think we have a legit top 15 team right now. This team should be way more consistent next year, has lots of talent and size. I think the ceiling will depend on a couple of different guys developing/taking jumps.
Click to expand...
wDq6qVv.gif
 
#739      
Dee_4_Three_83
LvilleILL1 said:
In terms of what they may add, I think one more is possible:

I put the Jovic video out there earlier. There is legit interest from both parties, but Illinois has to balance a couple of things:

The small small smalll chance Will decides to come back. Again, very tiny, but there is a scenario where it could happen. Very unlikely though.

Do they want to add an athletic 4 like Jovic or a backup guard that can knock down shots/defend for that lost spot? If it's a guard it would either be a euro or a cheaper portal guy. Have to find the right fit there.

Right now we are looking at (It's April and how guys perform will change this):

Petrovic (30 minutes), Kylan (5 minutes)
Kylan (30 minutes), Lee/Ty (5 minutes)
Andrej (33 minutes) Ty (7 minutes)
Mirkovic (15 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes) Ty (5 minutes) Ben (10 minutes)
Tomi (30 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes)

Wagler, Lee, Jake, and JJ as deeper rotation guys.


Again this is a pure guess on April 28th. Like I said, chance to add one more.
Click to expand...

We are going to be so good, we will play 4 on 5 for the last 5 minutes of the game just to help other teams feel like they had a chance. LOL

In all seriousness though, thank you for showing this visual. It helps to see the impact of another addition. I feel like the add has to be somebody with a different skill set. Hopefully long, strong, and defensive-minded. This team should have no problem scoring, but when the ball isn't going in, I want to have a defensive shutdown lineup. I suppose it could come from this group:

Kylan
Ty
Andrej
Big Z/Mirk
Tomi

I feel like it's a strong D lineup, but we could have trouble with fast teams either in transition or quick cutting/passing teams. I just think we need one more fast long dude that doesn't need the offense to go through them to be happy and can be proud of being a 10 minute a game lightning rod type player. It's a niche market, but that's what I would like to see.
 
#740      
the juiceman cometh
#741      
Yes33
What does donor say when he sees tape of our inbounds plays? 🤔😤😠
 
#743      
RichardKeenesCousin
LvilleILL1 said:
In terms of what they may add, I think one more is possible:

I put the Jovic video out there earlier. There is legit interest from both parties, but Illinois has to balance a couple of things:

The small small smalll chance Will decides to come back. Again, very tiny, but there is a scenario where it could happen. Very unlikely though.

Do they want to add an athletic 4 like Jovic or a backup guard that can knock down shots/defend for that lost spot? If it's a guard it would either be a euro or a cheaper portal guy. Have to find the right fit there.

Right now we are looking at (It's April and how guys perform will change this):

Petrovic (30 minutes), Kylan (5 minutes)
Kylan (30 minutes), Lee/Ty (5 minutes)
Andrej (33 minutes) Ty (7 minutes)
Mirkovic (15 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes) Ty (5 minutes) Ben (10 minutes)
Tomi (30 minutes) Zvonomir (10 minutes)

Wagler, Lee, Jake, and JJ as deeper rotation guys.


Again this is a pure guess on April 28th. Like I said, chance to add one more.
Click to expand...
This is great and I really appreciate it, but what is your greatest athletic accomplishment?
 
#746      
My2Cents
LvilleILL1 said:
Massive commitment!!

Here is what happened to the best of my understanding:

Andrej's visit was fantastic. At the end of the visit, he verbally committed to the staff in some form. The staff's read off of it was that an announcement was imminent, but that obviously did not happen. Over the last few days, tons of schools tried to call and pry him off of his verbal to Illinois. Obviously, in this day and age, nothing is official until it's public.

I do think he took the time to think through his options. Might have felt he got caught in the high of his visit, and he did hear other schools out. However, like I said the past few days, not much changed overall in this recruitment. Illinois was always the leader throughout the entire time from the minute he hit the portal.

I think this was a recruitment where certain schools tried to create more buzz/drama that was not really there to get rid of the Illinois momentum.

Brad and OA need to be praised for this one. Prying this kid off of the west coast was no easy feat. Andrej loves the sell that the staff gave to him. The opportunity to play with the Ivisic brothers up front along with two guards like Kylan and Petrovic is going to open up so much for him. He hasn't been able to play with these level of players in college yet.

Peja LOVED Brad from what I heard. That played as big of a deal as any in this recruitment imo.

The staff went away from Sarr once they got word that Andrej was 100% hitting the portal. Sarr's price also played a role in that choice/his NBA interest, but I alluded to the mystery man a couple weeks before he hit the portal. People can say pivot this pivot that etc, but this was one of if not their top target this offseason.

I will go into what they might add in the next post if they add any more, but I think we have a legit top 15 team right now. This team should be way more consistent next year, has lots of talent and size. I think the ceiling will depend on a couple of different guys developing/taking jumps.
Click to expand...
Wait.......Brad talks to recruits?
 
#747      
IlliniFan42
Obviously will change, but I could see something like this. My rules when making one of these is 30 minutes is the limit for a single player and 5-minute intervals:

Petrovic (30 minutes), Ty (10 minutes)
Kylan (30 minutes), Lee (5 minutes), Ty (5 minutes)
Andrej (30 minutes), Ty (5 minutes), Davis (5 minutes)
Mirkovic (20 minutes), Zvonomir (10 minutes), Ben (10 minutes)
Tomislav (25 minutes), Zvonomir (10 minutes), Jakstys (5 minutes)
 
#749      
Second place is 1st loser
dwpittman said:
He was damn good. I was lucky to strike him out during a summer league game.
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That's a heck of a feat because you're right, he was damn good! To K that guy is a legitimately good sports story to tell.

Our freshman field was beyond the RF fence of the Varsity field we were playing on. He hit this ball over our RF fence, over the bleachers next to our freshman field, over the third base dugout and onto the freshman field pitcher's mound....all while the freshman team was playing. Their game paused and everyone was looking over like....wtf was that? He did that using a wood bat.

So, my coach comes out to give me the "it's ok" speech. I guess he thought I was rattled.

He gets through his schpeil and I start laughing. He asks me what I was laughing about and I plainly asked..."Did you see how GD far that went?"

I immediately got the hook, then got lit up in the dugout for not taking things seriously. I just rolled my eyes.

I MAYBE topped out at 81 or 82 MPH on a good day. That had to look like a center cut beach ball splitting the plate in half.
 
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