Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#153      
Petefrom3
Throw the bag at Blackwell. He by far would be the best shooter we would have. If we would have had Blackwell in the lineup this season I think we would beat Connecticut.
 
#156      
HensonHall71
AirTran said:
Clearly you are right.

But our options (in terms of minutes) are far less limited than people think. The best player to replace Keaton at 1 / 2 - David Mirkovic. Not saying that will happen - but if everyone returns, the staff and the players are going to be looking for the best "fit" not necessarily a particular position as some others are suggesting. Other the Andrej (he's going to be on the weakside wing, which is going to cause all sorts of problems defending) Tomi and Z everyone else can adapt to who is on the floor.

Understand your sentiment - and not trying to be controversial - But I don't see Blackwell as a great fit.

He's not a great passer

He's an OK defender

He's a good rebounder.

He's a good 3pt shooter. He takes shots inside the arc, that aren't a fit here.

He wouldn't be our number 1 or number 2 offensive option - those are going to be Andrej and Mirk.

He wouldn't play 35 mins here either - not if everyone comes back.

The issue with Blackwell (and the offense Wisconsin runs) is that he needs 13 - 15 shots a game and shoot 8 threes a game and that is NEVER going to happen at Illinois.

We went through a similar discussion when A.J. Storr was available 2 years ago and a similar conversation about Brandon Podziemski 3 years ago. Blackwell needs to touch the ball 60% of the possessions. The offense we run is based on the exact opposite. Keaton Wagler took 20% of our shots last year. Blackwell is NOT Keaton Wagler otherwise he would be a second team All - American and declaring for the NBA draft.

I could be (an am willing to be) wrong about this, but I don't see the interest on the part of the Illini players or staff for this one.

If Z, Tomi, Mirk, Andrej, Ty and Jake all stay... I don't think we hit the transfer portal all that hard. One of the 4 Freshman is going to get minutes, Jason Jakstys - who was getting small minutes prior to blood clot is going to be a difficult decision. Given the crew we have - I think the ultimate decision or who else is brought in will be made more by the players than the coaches this year. The team aspect of this group is really unrivaled.

There are only 200 minutes per game and if all 7 come back.... they are going to be better next year than they were this year. So, 160 of the 200 minutes are already spoken for. We are going to use an 9 man rotation to start, that will ultimately turn into an 8 man rotation owing to injuries or consequences we can't predict.
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I respectfully disagree on your points about Blackwell’s game- I think you are way underestimating his ability to adapt to a new team and system. He’s an athletic, high volume/ very good three point shooter. Look no further than Andrej adjusting his game and becoming a much more efficient scorer in our offense

If you believe his statement- he wants to go somewhere to win, if he’s bought into winning, that is half the battle- clearly Andrej was last year
 
#160      
joeybcrazy13
NarrowJ said:
I nearly forgot this guy existed:

www.on3.com

UNC PF James Brown plans to enter NCAA transfer portal

.
www.on3.com www.on3.com
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soul train funk GIF
 
#164      
CMC
I got told to expect some subtraction before any addition …
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I can't imagine this not being true and my only inside information is common sense.
 
#165      
201154JC
Good grief never go full Loyalty the week after a Final Four run.

We just had to live through an Indinia football NC and a scUM basketball NC.

And the sudden end to our own great season.

Maybe take a couple days off and drink.
Binge a show. Make googly eyes at your SO.
Eat two too many gummies.
Bake some cookies.
Have a Snickers.
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Winners never quit, quitters never Win! ;-)
 
#166      
Second place is 1st loser
Aillini32 said:
100%. That’s my biggest concern with a Blackwell and Coleman backcourt. Yes, Keaton is not a “PG” per se but he has good vision and is a good passer. Blackwell has not show that and it’s rare to see a guy completely flip into being a good lead guard in year 4, especially someone who Wisconsin brought in a lead guard 2 years in a row to run the show. He’s a very good player but I worry they will need Coleman to initiate more
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My biggest concern would be that there is absolutely no way Andrej is going to take a backseat again when it comes to starting and ball dominance.

Both he and Kylan "took one for the team" because of the injuries popping up and Brad, correctly, not wanting to upset chemistry. The whole Wagler coming out of nowhere to be the face of the program didn't help matters(for Drej and/or Kylan). Those weren't the roles that they signed up for, but hey, life happens.

He's got one more year in college, wants to be an NBA player and only has one more bite of the apple to make it happen. If we knowingly bring in a guy who also want to be "the guy", there's only so many shots to go around. We had this issue with TJS and Mayer three years again. Matt wanted his shots and some of them were purely out of an "I'm going to get mine" thought process. Obviously, that didn't work out well, but the following year, having that clear cut guy, with a great balance of "other guys", was the perfect mix. Marcus handled that role perfectly.

Next year, if we took on a guy like Blackwell, who would be the guy that, late in the game, gets the ball iso and gets the shot or is the playmaker. Again, going back to Keaton, that was not the intent when the season started, but he inherited the job.

Drej will want that guarantee, as would another ball dominant scorer, who is also looking to get to the league and it's their senior season. We would all want that promise.

This doesn't even take into account freshmen coming in that are probably making a good buck who probably want some assurances that they'll be a big part of the offense.

I think that taking on a high level, true PG with size will be the direction they go.

I can't stand Michigan and I think that May is a weasel, but he picked the perfect pieces and they fit together beautifully from the first tip of the season to cutting down the nets last night. Very hard to do.
 
#167      
and 69 others
Not sure what happened to Z's shot. On February 4th, he was 25 for 69 on the season from 3. Good for 36.2%. That's pretty good. After February 4th? 3 for 31, 9.7% on extremelyhigh quality looks! He made 1 single 3 in the past month and a half! He could probably knock down turnaround jumpers at a better rate. Truly a bizarre falloff. Especially because his first 2 seasons he was a career 37.5% shooter on decent volume. Just makes very little sense.

I would be surprised if Z doesn't return to shooting the 3 at a high 30% clip on medium volume next year. His shot and mechanics looked good, just seemed to be in the coldest stretch of his life. Very weird.
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I’ve noticed that our guys’ 3 point percentages are lower at Illinois than wherever they transfer to or have transferred from. I can’t really think of why that would be, but if you check the numbers it seems accurate for a high percentage of the players.
 
#170      
Indy Illini Fan
Chiieeff said:
Appreciate the insights, Indy! What are your thoughts on Ty? Probable return?
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I think it’s best for all if he comes back …

I’m not sure that there is a definitive role for him right now but he’s going to have the opportunity to earn one …

If nothing else … I think he can be the guy who we put in to stop a dude like Boyd getting 40 on us …
 
#171      
Julie Meinart
Right. We don't need distributor(s) per se, but we do need ballhandlers to replace Keaton & Kylan. If we do ink Blackwell, then we will definitely need another ballhandler.
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I don't think Keaton has made a decision yet has he?
 
#172      
NarrowJ
We could be Indiana sitting there with 2 whole scholarship players remaining: Nick Dorn & Trent Sisley

I've heard they are going to go hog wild with NIL $ this year though... I'm eager to see what they end up with
 
#173      
Uihoop2023!
I just don’t agree. You’re expecting some pretty big jumps out of returning players. Even just comparing to this years team. Keatons better than Blackwell. I’ll take Boswell over morillo and Coleman. So you’re basically assuming the returners will vault us up. I think that’s a big ask.

To me that teams much closer to 10 than 1. But go ahead and assign absolutes to hypothetical teams on April 7th.
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This is a silly argument to have at this time honestly. The fact that some sites feel that illini could be preseason #1 does nothing but help us with portal targets. It legitimizes the program on a national level
 
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