Former Illini in College Basketball '25-26

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#251      
the juiceman cometh
mysterio2525 said:
Carey Booth is an interesting case study. he seemed serviceable at every other place but Illinois. he looked pretty bad when he played with us but he also never played. I have a friend who is a Colorado State fan who says he's been solid and the numbers back it up this year.

no clue what went on with him and Brad but I joke with my friend that I think Brad hates him.
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It's really not that mysterious. He's a decent mid-major player. Take his numbers and compare them to other mid-major guy's we've brought in as transfers, and you'll see that he's probably not the type of guy we'd bring in based on what he's done at Colorado St. I mean, Connor Serven, a guy who played 44 total minutes and scored 3 total points in 3 seasons with us, is averaging 21 minutes, 6.5 points, and 3.8 rebounds this season for Mercer. The difference in level of competition matters sometimes.

At Notre Dame, he was inconsistent but would have these games where it looked like if things clicked there could be something there. In a freshman that can be encouraging. I'm guessing there was something (work ethic, coachability, whatever) that kept BU from being able to unlock that whatever potential was there.
 
#252      
IllinitripleJ
mysterio2525 said:
Carey Booth is an interesting case study. he seemed serviceable at every other place but Illinois. he looked pretty bad when he played with us but he also never played. I have a friend who is a Colorado State fan who says he's been solid and the numbers back it up this year.

no clue what went on with him and Brad but I joke with my friend that I think Brad hates him.
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I saw Booth when CSU played at Loyola earlier in the year. Loyola is terrible, close to the worst team in the A-10. Carey started but only shot 2 for 6 from the field. He seemed very soft. If Carey went straight to CSU from ND and Brad sent me to scout Carey I would have told him a hard pass. But Carey is the son of a former NBA player and looks like a NBA player. But he plays like an average tall mid-major player. Not a rotation player on a Big 10 or Big 12 team.
 
#253      
mysterio2525
IllinitripleJ said:
I saw Booth when CSU played at Loyola earlier in the year. Loyola is terrible, close to the worst team in the A-10. Carey started but only shot 2 for 6 from the field. He seemed very soft. If Carey went straight to CSU from ND and Brad sent me to scout Carey I would have told him a hard pass. But Carey is the son of a former NBA player and looks like a NBA player. But he plays like an average tall mid-major player. Not a rotation player on a Big 10 or Big 12 team.
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that was my assessment here as well. Colorado State was also pretty good last few years under medved so I thought they were doing better this year than they actually are
 
#254      
illini510
mysterio2525 said:
that was my assessment here as well. Colorado State was also pretty good last few years under medved so I thought they were doing better this year than they actually are
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They are under a first year coach(Ali Farokmanesh of Northern Iowa fame) so to expect them to be at the top of the MWC with Utah St, San Diego St, New Mexico(who happens to have a really good coach), Nevada, and Grand Canyon is a big ask. Regardless, I think Carey is at the level he needs to be at and that's alright. I don't think he is a bum player but he's also not some under the radar major talent either. Just somewhere in between
 
#256      
BigE
DGL with 32 points 11-22, 5-11 on threes against San Diego ST. Friday night. The announcers said he's leading the nation in scoring the last 3 weeks, I have no idea if it's true but that's what the said. Very glad for him that he got a chance to shine this year all be it against lower competition
 
#257      
AirTran
CentralILLini said:
Alright, where would an all-Illini transfer team sit this year on a national scale. Heard Jim Mattson bring this up on the radio today and thought it was a fun conversation. Here’s the roster:

Guards:
-Dra
-Adam Miller
-Jayden Epps
-Nico Moretti
-Skyy Clark

Forwards:
-Morez Johnson
-Amani Hansberry
-Sencire Harris
-Cary Booth

Is this a tournament team this year? Top 10/25? Bubble? Etc.
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Kendrick Nunn, Coleman Hawkins, Alan Griffin, Jayden Epps, Mark Smith, Skyy Clark, Andre Curbelo, Adam Miller, Te'Jon Lucas and Morez Johnson are my top transfers outs - that team makes the tournament but not certain it gets past the round of 32. However, when it comes to the portal we have done pretty well with the transfers in. On the whole, the transfer portal has been a big help to our men's basketball program.
 
#258      
illini510
BigE said:
DGL with 32 points 11-22, 5-11 on threes against San Diego ST. Friday night. The announcers said he's leading the nation in scoring the last 3 weeks, I have no idea if it's true but that's what the said. Very glad for him that he got a chance to shine this year all be it against lower competition
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I believe he has led the nation in scoring since Feb 1st. 29 ppg before his not so great game vs Utah St(10 or 12 pts) but he was right back at it at San Diego St. He has been on a heater and bender for about 5 weeks now. Playing completely out of his mind. He is just on another level. I'm rooting for the guy like crazy. His intensity has been off the charts and you can tell it in each game. Would like to see UNLV go on a run in the MWC tournament. The team has actually looked legit. Completely annihilated Utah St and went to the wire on the road at San Diego St. Him and BJ Davis from SDSU were just going shot for shot trying to out-do one another. It's probably the most exciting SDSU game I've seen in years b/c we're so used to them playing these grinders in the 60s and that game was like a 92-88 final score. I think DGL is playing his way into a bigger NIL deal with someone next season

I also wouldn't call the Mountain West a cupcake league. Utah St, New Mexico, SDSU, Grand Canyon, Nevada, Colo St. are all quality teams with a few of those either on the bubble(NM, SDSU) or firmly in(Utah St) the tournament. It's the #6 league in the country per current RPI rankings and that's above the A-10 and WCC
 
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#260      
One Man Fast Break
Booth was a third/fourth big man to start the year and just fell out of the rotation and from there just lost all confidence and then maybe a bit of attitude on top of it. It’s not like with hindsight he was better than Ivisic, White, or MJ so he wasn’t really mishandled. Not every guy is able to make the most of spot duty. It’s a sorta rare ability you can’t really scout for and won’t know until a player is in it. Nobody is actively looking for guys who are a 9th man.
 
#261      
Grandpa
One Man Fast Break said:
Booth was a third/fourth big man to start the year and just fell out of the rotation and from there just lost all confidence and then maybe a bit of attitude on top of it. It’s not like with hindsight he was better than Ivisic, White, or MJ so he wasn’t really mishandled. Not every guy is able to make the most of spot duty. It’s a sorta rare ability you can’t really scout for and won’t know until a player is in it. Nobody is actively looking for guys who are a 9th man.
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10th, and should have been 13th after Kutcher and Redd. I'm the opposite of a Brad apologist, but Booth was literally unplayable. I didn't think that I would say that about anyone.
 
#263      
IllinitripleJ
BalloonsTheElephant said:
I love Dra, but where does he fit? He's an undersized off ball guard. He tries hard, he is full of effort, and is insanely athletic.

How does he help us beat Michigan? Who do we drop to put him in the rotation?

I also liked Podz, but again, he was coming off a freshman year where he really looked like a freshman and also had some flashes. A top tier team isn't going to hand over the keys to that guy.

And like Dra, he was able to go to a smaller program and be given the keys against inferior competition and shine (as I said Dra would when he did leave). We all knew Podz was a shooter, and he shot his way onto an NBA team. I don't think anyone saw that leap coming. And I believe as a fan base we are all very excited for his success.

The problem is that unless you are a REALLY good freshman, it's insanely difficult for a contending team to put their faith in you. With the portal system in full effect, it's always win now mode and you will get recruited over.
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How tall is Cadeau? Gibbs-Lawhorn is tall enough. He's 6'1". Against Alabama this year he scored 25 points. UNLV got beat but he played well. Brad should have told Gibbs-Lawhorn he was going to be in the 3 guard rotation this year and he was expecting great things from him this year. We had Boswell & Wagler but no other good rotation guard.
 
#264      
One Man Fast Break
Grandpa said:
10th, and should have been 13th after Kutcher and Redd. I'm the opposite of a Brad apologist, but Booth was literally unplayable. I didn't think that I would say that about anyone.
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No, I'm talking about even if he was the ideal version of himself, he would have only been a 9th man/4th big with spot duty usage. Just based on who else was there.
 
#265      
illini510
IllinitripleJ said:
How tall is Cadeau? Gibbs-Lawhorn is tall enough. He's 6'1". Against Alabama this year he scored 25 points. UNLV got beat but he played well. Brad should have told Gibbs-Lawhorn he was going to be in the 3 guard rotation this year and he was expecting great things from him this year. We had Boswell & Wagler but no other good rotation guard.
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I watched Texas A&M and St Mary's and DGL could easily fit into Texas A&M and their style of chaos. He has the same body type as Pop Isaacs who plays for them. As you indicated, he can very much play at the high level despite his height. He's not 5'10. He's tall enough to play at a high level program
 
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#266      
Tacomallini
illini510 said:
I watched Texas A&M and St Mary's and DGL could easily fit into Texas A&M and their style of chaos. He has the same body type as Pop Isaacs who plays for them. As you indicated, he can very much play at the high level despite his height. He's not 5'10. He's tall enough to play at a high level program
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I don't follow UNLV at all, but as a program, they're not chopped liver. Multiple Final Fours and a National Championship. Last NCAA tournament appearance was 2013, but of their top 5 scorers this year, looks like 3 could be back next year, including Dra and 2 current freshmen. It'd be cool to see him lead them back into the tourney next season.
 
#267      
illini510
Tacomallini said:
I don't follow UNLV at all, but as a program, they're not chopped liver. Multiple Final Fours and a National Championship. Last NCAA tournament appearance was 2013, but of their top 5 scorers this year, looks like 3 could be back next year, including Dra and 2 current freshmen. It'd be cool to see him lead them back into the tourney next season.
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He's going to command a bigger NIL amount. He's no longer under the radar. Who knows if UNLV will even be able to afford his services after how much of a jump he made. But, outside of that, they were one of the hotter teams in the last month in the MWC so I don't doubt that they could make some noise next year if they kept their nucleus together
 
#268      
Tacomallini
illini510 said:
He's going to command a bigger NIL amount. He's no longer under the radar. Who knows if UNLV will even be able to afford his services after how much of a jump he made. But, outside of that, they were one of the hotter teams in the last month in the MWC so I don't doubt that they could make some noise next year if they kept their nucleus together
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Time will tell, and it’ll be fun keeping an eye on Dra and UNLV during transfer portal season.
 
#271      
EllderIlliniFan
ChiTown said:
This little double dipper,after stiffing us his freshman year and getting full NIL payment…..
https://twitter.com/x/status/2036137686231294343
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That will set a new precedent. Quit your team early in order to get another year of eligibility. So if things don't work out when you transfer just drop out by mid season and preserve your eligibility to enter the portal for the next year. If you do it twice and have only played a third of the season that may only count as one year.
 
#272      
Bucktown
EllderIlliniFan said:
That will set a new precedent. Quit your team early in order to get another year of eligibility. So if things don't work out when you transfer just drop out by mid season and preserve your eligibility to enter the portal for the next year. If you do it twice and have only played a third of the season that may only count as one year.
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See Malik Elzy
 
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