Illini Basketball 2018-2019

ivwilsoniv · Jun 19, 2018

GolfFan1 said:
The na sayers on this board crack me up. Underwood has not played a single game with his first real class and you are ready to throw in the towel. This years team will be a real surprise and win a trip to the tourney. Guards win games and they have a load of talent at guard. Look at Wisconsin, they had one of, if not the best center in the league, and could not get into the dance. Guards, Guards, Guards. And our beloved have them. Best tandem in the conference. (Ayo, Trent). Also a lot of noise about how good Feliz is. Don't count out Jordan or Williams.

This team is not going to the tourney. That's the most Koolaid I've heard in years. I mean, it would be awesome if they did, and I sincerely hope they do, but... I just don't see it happening with this lineup and the lack of depth.

If they do, I'll drink a whole pitcher of orange Koolaid. Save this post and hold me to it.

Berg88 · Jun 19, 2018

ivwilsoniv said:
This team is not going to the tourney. That's the most Koolaid I've heard in years. I mean, it would be awesome if they did, and I sincerely hope they do, but... I just don't see it happening with this lineup and the lack of depth.

If they do, I'll drink a whole pitcher of orange Koolaid. Save this post and hold me to it.

If this team makes the tournament, I will tattoo GolfFan1 on my forehead.

JIllini · Jun 20, 2018

While I don't think we make the tourney, I'm also not convinced this team will be the absolute trainwreck so many of us are expecting. As others have mentioned we still have a pretty strong backcourt which often wins games. And even though our frontcourt is very inexperienced, having a 7 footer in the post should at least give us some presence there.

Newman · Jun 20, 2018

GolfFan1 said:
The na sayers on this board crack me up. Underwood has not played a single game with his first real class and you are ready to throw in the towel. This years team will be a real surprise and win a trip to the tourney. Guards win games and they have a load of talent at guard. Look at Wisconsin, they had one of, if not the best center in the league, and could not get into the dance. Guards, Guards, Guards. And our beloved have them. Best tandem in the conference. (Ayo, Trent). Also a lot of noise about how good Feliz is. Don't count out Jordan or Williams.

We have the potential to have great guards, but they're young and probably a year away from being able to carry the team to the tournament. Right now, only Trent has proven that he's capable at playing at a high level consistently. Ayo will probably be there but it's too early to assume how everyone will click together. That being said, we're not going to do as poorly as S&C's prediction but the safest bet is that we're looking at the NIT if anything.

tpbradley · Jun 20, 2018

Berg88 said:
If this team makes the tournament, I will tattoo GolfFan1 on my forehead.

Ok, I love a good challenge. I'm in too. If this team makes the tournament, I will drink lots of beer and cheer loudly.

BlueLeader · Jun 20, 2018

GolfFan1 said:
This years team will be a real surprise and win a trip to the tourney.

Posters on this board are certifiable, sometimes. I feel like just 12 months ago the same rhetoric was being spouted about ridiculous projections for us.

Quick Reminder from this time last year:

I can't believe only 10 of us picked no post season. Lots of koolaid!

doowink · Jun 20, 2018

I think our odds of making the tourney this year aren't really very good....not because we don't have some talent...but we are young...and very thin on the inside...but our biggest obstacle to reaching the tourney this year is our schedule...as I've stated in another thread, it may be difficult for us to go into conference play this year with .500 record....thats not to say that we don't make progress and aren't on the right track overall...just the schedule is one of the more difficult ones we've had in several years

AttentionDeficit · Jun 20, 2018

Saying we will or won't make the tourney seems preposterous either way at this point. We don't even know what the roster is going to be! We still have plenty of time to sign a summer graduate big, or for two more guys to transfer out.

RickBB · Jun 20, 2018

I still believe that last year's season changed direction on 1 play....the failed TJL to Alstork alley opp (Maryland maybe). Sure TJL could have pulled it out, we could have ran some clock, and probably won that game....but if that pass connects, the roof comes of the SFC, Alstork gets a ton of adulation from fans that bolsters his confidence and carries him through the season, the fans finally are happy that we stepped on someone's throat as opposed to playing not to lose.

I'm optimistic about this year, but that's my nature. Sure there are some challenges, but as stated by the other optimistic posters....College hoops is a guards game.

And the only bit of insider information I'll ever be able to provide this board..I was having a conversation with a member of one of the staffs that TJL was rumored to be considering when transferring. TJL kept asking "Can you promise me 35 minutes a game." They said you have to earn it, but we anticipate you being a major part of our plans, but our hopes are that we are deep enough no one has to play 35 minutes...but TJL kept coming back to a guarantee of 35 minutes....they wouldn't give it. Asking for a guarantee of time, even when you are told, "we hope no one plays 35 minutes" doesn't seem like the kind of player that Underwood would love having.

That info doesn't really mean too much, I just thought it was interesting....it probably isn't to earth shattering though.

UofI08 · Jun 20, 2018

GolfFan1 said:
The na sayers on this board crack me up. Underwood has not played a single game with his first real class and you are ready to throw in the towel. This years team will be a real surprise and win a trip to the tourney. Guards win games and they have a load of talent at guard. Look at Wisconsin, they had one of, if not the best center in the league, and could not get into the dance. Guards, Guards, Guards. And our beloved have them. Best tandem in the conference. (Ayo, Trent). Also a lot of noise about how good Feliz is. Don't count out Jordan or Williams.

I honestly love the positivity, and I'll cheer like hell for this team to do well. But if you're gonna have that kind of confidence in this team, you can't come back on during the season when we're clearly a bottom tier B1G team and make excuses for their performance.

The majority of this board sees this team as young, with good backcourt potential and huge question marks in the front court. I'd say the vast majority also believe that Underwood is a good coach and deserves a chance to right the ship. But we also see all the transfers and the desperation in recruiting. 99.9% of the people on here hope like hell we make the tournament, but the majority of us realize that's a tall task with this roster.

I guess bottom line is I get tired of people taking the far extreme opposite of their view and acting like people actually believe it. Way too many strawman arguments. Nobody has called for Underwood's job, and nobody has pined for a return of Weber or Groce. Are people upset with the results on the court, the transfers, and the recruiting? Absolutely, and frankly, everyone should at least have some concern.

skyIdub · Jun 20, 2018

Obelix · Jun 20, 2018

BlueLeader said:
Posters on this board are certifiable, sometimes. I feel like just 12 months ago the same rhetoric was being spouted about ridiculous projections for us.

I can't believe only 10 of us picked no post season. Lots of koolaid!

It was actually higher, I looked at the poll before the EIU game and the people who thought we were going to NCAA was in the mid-70%, and high-90% going to NCAA/NIT.

Dren1 · Jun 20, 2018

AttentionDeficit said:
Saying we will or won't make the tourney seems preposterous either way at this point. We don't even know what the roster is going to be! We still have plenty of time to sign a summer graduate big, or for two more guys to transfer out.

I agree with this thought. While it seems unlikely that we will make the tourney given the current roster make up, there are obviously a broad range of potential outcomes. That said, I don't mind seeing positivity from some posters. :thumb:

TCTORNADO · Jun 20, 2018

BlueLeader said:
Posters on this board are certifiable, sometimes. I feel like just 12 months ago the same rhetoric was being spouted about ridiculous projections for us.

Quick Reminder from this time last year:

I can't believe only 10 of us picked no post season. Lots of koolaid!

Clearly the Russians hacked into this poll.:thumb:

imjustsooffended · Jun 20, 2018

Dan said:
https://twitter.com/IlliniMBB/status/1009252898390323202

I can't emphasize enough how dope this picture is

Second and Chalmers · Jun 20, 2018

Amazing how much basketball shorts fashion has changed since I was a lad.

We're now in a world where the baggy Allen Iverson-style shorts are for old guys.

Obelix · Jun 20, 2018

A few thoughts addressing multiple posts:

1) Wisconsin just having Ethan Happ (who is not really a true C either) does not mean that Wisconsin was strong in the frontcourt and their overall inside game. It just actually proves that you need a lot more than one really good player in the frontcourt/inside game.

2) Even if a team had a strong inside game (which Wisconsin did not), but not a good backcourt and failed, does not mean that the opposite will be true either, being very successful having strong PG play but no inside game. That is some faulty logic.

3) While I have said many times that Illinois will be much improved at 1-3, does not mean that Illinois will be so dominant at those positions versus the rest of B1G and other good team to compensate for the lack of frontcourt/inside game. Frazier is good and Ayo (who I have seen probably more than most) will be good. But no current player (other than TF in just 1 of 2 polls) even made honorable mention in the B1G. It is not that SF is a position of strength either that will mask critical gaps at 4/5 and overall inside game.

4) Being hopeful and being unrealistic are two totally different things. Some posters have totally unrealistic expectations and make totally unrealistic predictions. Yet, when things do not work out, they say "we all knew" we were not going to be good last year. That "we all knew" is not genuine as predictions from last year show. I actually doubt if even a few (if any) predicted 4 B1G wins last year.

5) Being a fan and supporting the team during games does not mean that you have to be delusional, yet calling delusional other fan bases with unrealistic expectations. Mirrors, glass houses, etc.

6) Independent of what fans think, no unbiased analysts will pick the Illini given current roster (with Kane) with no additions as an NCAA team. For the Illini to make the NCAA, or even compete for it, we will have to exceed expectations by A LOT, with unexpected positive contributions from multiple players. Current roster and talent level need significant upgrades at critical positions. That is why a very strong 2019 Fall recruiting class is as important, or more important, that the season itself.

CoalCity · Jun 20, 2018

Second and Chalmers said:
Amazing how much basketball shorts fashion has changed since I was a lad.

We're now in a world where the baggy Allen Iverson-style shorts are for old guys.

While I dont want them to return to the just barely longer than a Speedo look that was the way I grew up, I'm glad to see the shorts get back to a mid length like Ayo is sporting. The long baggy look always looked like pure garbage to me.

Second and Chalmers · Jun 20, 2018

Obelix said:
It is not that SF is a position of strength either that will mask critical gaps at 4/5 and overall inside game.

Especially if we're constantly deputizing our best options at the 3 as makeshift 4's.

Some posters have totally unrealistic expectations and make totally unrealistic predictions. Yet, when things do not work out, they say "we all knew"

I actually doubt if even a few (if any) predicted 4 B1G wins last year.

When I said that was the kind of team I was looking at in mid-December last year, oh the howls of scorn and derision!

That is why a very strong 2019 Fall recruiting class is as important, or more important, that the season itself.

Maybe, MAYBE I could grant you that documented performance relative to expectations in 2019 recruiting would present more correlative data for future on-court results. Maybe.

But as a general rule, in playing basketball, the basketball is the most important thing. We need our roster to be better basketball players with deeper knowledge and experience of the system their running a year from now. That's job #1. Whether that correlates with some specific win total remains to be seen.

Brass Cannon · Jun 20, 2018

Desert Illini said:
How many were saying that after year 1? His first 3 years were 6-25, 10-21, 12-20.

As an impartial observer, what's your perspective on the current state of affairs over here?

There were a handful that were opposed to the hire from Day 1. Boy how right were they.

As an impartial observer i would be very concerned. The foundation for the future should already be in place but i am not seeing it. Can BU right the ship absolutely but its getting harder by the day. I would expect a worse year from Illinois with the roster taking a step back it appears. And the rest of the league improving overall.

PtownIllini8 · Jun 20, 2018

Ga65 said:
Certainly an improvement defensively with Ayo over Mark but believe we will miss TjLs on the ball defense. Believe Kane will be huge improvement over Finke. Rest will be length over experience. If the ball gets into the paint we will struggle.

Ayo's D > TJL's D

PtownIllini8 · Jun 20, 2018

Second and Chalmers said:
Can you believe I give these takes away for free?

The better question is, "Can we believe you have these takes in the first place?"

Bogey99 · Jun 20, 2018

BlueLeader said:
Posters on this board are certifiable, sometimes. I feel like just 12 months ago the same rhetoric was being spouted about ridiculous projections for us.

Quick Reminder from this time last year:

I can't believe only 10 of us picked no post season. Lots of koolaid!

It's a silly internet poll with nothing at stake. I'd vote NCAA just on principle because I'm an optimist by nature and I'm sure there are others like me. Put $20 on the line (or a tattoo!) and I bet you'd see different results.

Second and Chalmers · Jun 20, 2018

Bogey99 said:
It's a silly internet poll with nothing at stake. I'd vote NCAA just on principle because I'm an optimist by nature and I'm sure there are others like me. Put $20 on the line (or a tattoo!) and I bet you'd see different results.

I agree with this. But nobody had us at 14-18. You can maybe squint a little bit and say inbound the ball against Maryland and wipe off the buzzer beater at Nebraska and we're in the neighborhood of where a neutral outside observer might have predicted, but on the whole we notably underperformed any reasonable expectation level.

Illwinsagain · Jun 20, 2018

Second and Chalmers said:
I agree with this. But nobody had us at 14-18. You can maybe squint a little bit and say inbound the ball against Maryland and wipe off the buzzer beater at Nebraska and we're in the neighborhood of where a neutral outside observer might have predicted, but on the whole we notably underperformed any reasonable expectation level.

You can add Wake, N'western and NM St to the list of games that should have gone the other way early in the season. Of course, one can always play the other side of the game. I think the team began to believe in the losing and began to think "here we go again". This year's new recruits had fantastic success in high school/jr college and I hope will not buy into the losing and believe in the wins.

Illini Basketball 2018-2019

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