Illini Basketball 2023-2024

Indyillini · Jul 27, 2023

EyeoftheIllini said:
You lost me at “expect improved shooting from nearly all returning players.” I believe the only players who had played in college and improved their shooting last year from their previous year were Goode and Dain (and Dain had played very limited minutes previously). Sure you can cite reasons for why that might have happened and hopefully better overall roster construction and some addition by subtraction helps, but expect? Hmmmm

Hawkins has become better every year. TSJ outside shooting was better than his previous years. The general assumption is more practice makes better shooters. Of course it doesn’t happen for everyone. But if we get marginal increases from most (Hawkins and TSJ) and from Harris and Ty (there is more room up than down) then in general we get better shooters.

Of course Goode and Domask should elevate the shooting. But they need good looks too. … I take your point. But if I was in Vegas I’d bet on a better shooting team than last year.

EyeoftheIllini · Jul 27, 2023

Indyillini said:
Hawkins has become better every year. TSJ outside shooting was better than his previous years. The general assumption is more practice makes better shooters. Of course it doesn’t happen for everyone. But if we get marginal increases from most (Hawkins and TSJ) and from Harris and Ty (there is more room up than down) then in general we get better shooters.

Of course Goode and Domask should elevate the shooting. But they need good looks too. … I take your point. But if I was in Vegas I’d bet on a better shooting team than last year.

Hawkins has improved each year overall, but what you said and I referenced was shooting and he was slightly worse last year overall, from 3 and had his lowest FT% in his career. TSJ’s 3-point % was actually his lowest since his freshman year, so not sure how you can say his outside shooting was better. I’m not saying they or the other returnees can’t or won’t improve their shooting, but not sure I expect it from the majority of them. As I said in a previous post, I do think that overall the team will shoot better and that they will be more fun to watch — or at least not as frustrating to watch.

Mojoman · Jul 27, 2023

ptgrd23 said:
TSJ needs to watch Ayo videos driving the lane and laying the ball high off the backboard to avoid the block

View attachment 27477 View attachment 27478 View attachment 27480

TSJ does not elevate so he is easily blocked once he gets into the lane

Agree that TSJ needs more finesse and creativity when finishing but he is much stronger and more explosive athlete than Ayo. Really has higher ceiling IMO.
Whether he gets there we will see.

Mojoman · Jul 27, 2023

hoopsfan47 said:
Fact. All anyone knows about DGL is what has been posted in videos from time to time. That shows a lot of potential.

Fact. No one knows for certain what kind of heart, determination, burning desire to win, and confidence in his skills and those of his teammates rest in DGL's head. But there are some indicators that these may all be positives.

Fact. No one knows for certain how DGL will react when he gets popped in the nose or gets exposed to the elite skills of B1G guards....most of which are bigger and stronger....but likely not quicker. Toughness is to be proven but there are positive indicators.

What I do know for certain is that he will dress in and Illini uniform, get the chance to show for a fact what he can do, and that I will be supporting him and hoping for great success.

There are two camps of opinion on this young man who plays a position this team needs badly to be competent. One is that he simply lacks what it takes to fill the role competently and the other that he has the potential to be a big surprise. One will have to eat crow. The other can boast "I told you so". I will do neither and only wish him huge success.

I think you might be overstating the two "camps".
Nobody knows for sure what we really have here, but he certainly has some offensive talent we have not seen here very often.
I like him, but have no idea what he will do out of the gate.
Hope he does well and contributes because we may really need him to help out if Rodgers experiment is a struggle.

As for the constant obsession about size and strength fans have about players, I value skill over that all day.

Watch the new Curry documentary.
You have to be able to hit shots.

These games are not Ultimate Fighting cage matches.

lstewart53x3 · Jul 27, 2023

If we could get frosh Sencire Harris type stats out of DGL, I’d be happy.

Give me 15 minutes, 5 points, and a few assists a game, and we win a game or two because of it.

Fr8trn16 · Jul 27, 2023

skyIdub said:
Now just get 7000 calories/day in him until Jan.

That's easy with my diet. Someone help me get under 2000 a day please!

Indyillini · Jul 28, 2023

EyeoftheIllini said:
Hawkins has improved each year overall, but what you said and I referenced was shooting and he was slightly worse last year overall, from 3 and had his lowest FT% in his career. TSJ’s 3-point % was actually his lowest since his freshman year, so not sure how you can say his outside shooting was better. I’m not saying they or the other returnees can’t or won’t improve their shooting, but not sure I expect it from the majority of them. As I said in a previous post, I do think that overall the team will shoot better and that they will be more fun to watch — or at least not as frustrating to watch.

I can’t argue your facts.

Joel Goodson · Jul 28, 2023

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1684957236571803649

marvin1991 · Jul 28, 2023

Joel Goodson said:
https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1684957236571803649

I have been hearing good things about Domask in practice. Think he will be solid contributor to the top dogs on the team.

Joel Goodson · Jul 28, 2023

marvin1991 said:
I have been hearing good things about Domask in practice. Think he will be solid contributor to the top dogs on the team.

yeah, gimme all the 4 year guys. very experienced players are gonna rarely be phased, if at all. Domask, Guerrier and Harmon: that's a stuff-ton of experience. am long on this team, traditional PG hole not withstanding. great timing for our international trip.

WRT to Domask: I think he's totally ready for the big stage and is gonna have a VG season, minimally.

DB11Headband · Jul 28, 2023

marvin1991 said:
I have been hearing good things about Domask in practice. Think he will be solid contributor to the top dogs on the team.

Correct. He is going to be huge for this team.

SkyysNotFalling · Jul 28, 2023

Would be absolutely shocked if this team finishes the entire year with less than 26 wins. They’re the most experienced & talented team top to bottom in the big ten by a wide margin.. only other team that compares is MSU. Purdue is a 1 trick pony.

Big Jack · Jul 28, 2023

DB11Headband said:
Correct. He is going to be huge for this team.

HailtotheChief · Jul 28, 2023

ChiTown said:
Don’t understand why some people keep saying DGL won’t get minutes

I wouldn't be shocked if later in the season he gets starters minutes. I love his swag, aggressiveness, and the arch on his jumper. He will get more tick than Harris because we need shooters and better handles on the floor.

iron · Jul 28, 2023

SkyysNotFalling said:
Would be absolutely shocked if this team finishes the entire year with less than 26 wins. They’re the most experienced & talented team top to bottom in the big ten by a wide margin.. only other team that compares is MSU. Purdue is a 1 trick pony.

Delusion is always fun.

This team didn't add enough to be meaningfully better than last year's team. 6 seed at best I'd say, which I'm content with, with this group

WRT Domask, I hope we see some him in more of the 2 guard role and Shannon sliding more to the 3 guard/wing. Domask has better handles than Shannon I think and it plays to Shannons strengths more.

I also hope Domask brings the ball up some and initiates the offense

I kinda like the idea of the

Domask
Harmon
Shannon
Goode
Hawkins

Line up

dbeverly26 · Jul 28, 2023

SkyysNotFalling said:
Would be absolutely shocked if this team finishes the entire year with less than 26 wins. They’re the most experienced & talented team top to bottom in the big ten by a wide margin.. only other team that compares is MSU. Purdue is a 1 trick pony.

At least it's a pretty good pony.

I'd take the under on 25.5 but that's true for me about 95% of the time. We've not won more than 25 games since 2006, though we almost certainly would've had 2021 been a normal year. Nonetheless, I do think we'll be markedly better this year than we were last year. I like the pieces that we have better than last year both individually and as a whole. Gonna be a long three months until the season starts...

foby · Jul 28, 2023

SkyysNotFalling said:
Would be absolutely shocked if this team finishes the entire year with less than 26 wins. They’re the most experienced & talented team top to bottom in the big ten by a wide margin.. only other team that compares is MSU. Purdue is a 1 trick pony.

I prefer to label my delusion as Optimism. I'll take the over.

And Purdue is going to be really tough. When you have 2 freshman guards who got a ton of pt, the growth curve should be slanting upward.

SkyysNotFalling · Jul 28, 2023

The big ten is just not good… look at other teams rosters and then look at ours. It has more to do with that than us being so much better. Huge talent drop off, and we have stayed arguably the same if not better, with more experience.

SkyysNotFalling · Jul 28, 2023

Purdue is going to win the conference, Edey is the most valuable player in the country.. you take him off that team and that Purdue team is like 10th or 11th in the league.. that is a BAD team without him.

MSU & Maryland are deep and good, maybe throw OSU in with them…

Other than those 3… what other roster would you rather have? I like us. A lot.

RockfordIllini · Jul 28, 2023

I expect Purdue to win the conference too. Another year of experience for Loyer and Smith should go a long way. I get Aaron Craft vibes from Smith. Think he will be a thorn in everyone’s side for the next 3 years. Throw in Gillis, Furst, Morton and TKR and that’s a pretty loaded roster.

However, I actually think we are a bad matchup for them if we play the right way. I don’t think their guards can handle our length and athleticism if we pressure them. Play Edey straight up and let him get 30+, but limit their 3 point attempts and try and turn them over 15+ times.

If we were to beat them twice I think we’ve got a shot.

SescIllini · Jul 28, 2023

Sincere Harris and Dain Dainja are so discounted on this board it amazes me. Harris has a combination of speed and size for the college level PG position that is going to be problematic for teams. He lacked last year the shooting, but his speed and hustle will get him minutes. Dainja last year was our most offensively efficient player, he looks trim down this year. It is hard to create minutes for everyone right now, believe there will be some flux until conference season rolls in. But the players and line-ups will sort themselves out, just find it difficult not seeing Harris playing a key role on defensive in particular.

HailtotheChief · Jul 28, 2023

SescIllini said:
Sincere Harris and Dain Dainja are so discounted on this board it amazes me. Harris has a combination of speed and size for the college level PG position that is going to be problematic for teams. He lacked last year the shooting, but his speed and hustle will get him minutes. Dainja last year was our most offensively efficient player, he looks trim down this year. It is hard to create minutes for everyone right now, believe there will be some flux until conference season rolls in. But the players and line-ups will sort themselves out, just find it difficult not seeing Harris playing a key role on defensive in particular.

I liked what Harris brought last season at times providing a spark. That said with our additions he is a 1 or 2 and will at best be the third or fourth option in those roles. At the 1 it is likely Ty, DGL, Harmon and then Harris. At the 2 Shannon, Domask, Harmon, Ty, and then Harris. With our new players that can shoot and handle better at PG. Harris will likely see less PT this season. If you feel he will see more then who do you see him jumping? It's going to be tough to have the shooting needed if Ty and Harris play much together.

Big Jack · Jul 28, 2023

SescIllini said:
Sincere Harris and Dain Dainja are so discounted on this board it amazes me. Harris has a combination of speed and size for the college level PG position that is going to be problematic for teams. He lacked last year the shooting, but his speed and hustle will get him minutes. Dainja last year was our most offensively efficient player, he looks trim down this year. It is hard to create minutes for everyone right now, believe there will be some flux until conference season rolls in. But the players and line-ups will sort themselves out, just find it difficult not seeing Harris playing a key role on defensive in particular.

Your are correct, others see Sinceres shooting as a death sentence. He will be a year better and smarter this year. Dain does have great offensive skills and ability to put the ball in the basket. I just hope he slows down and figures out how to screen more efficiently. Also listen to his coaches when they tell him he can't try certain moves against some opponents.

SkyysNotFalling · Jul 28, 2023

SescIllini said:
Sincere Harris and Dain Dainja are so discounted on this board it amazes me. Harris has a combination of speed and size for the college level PG position that is going to be problematic for teams. He lacked last year the shooting, but his speed and hustle will get him minutes. Dainja last year was our most offensively efficient player, he looks trim down this year. It is hard to create minutes for everyone right now, believe there will be some flux until conference season rolls in. But the players and line-ups will sort themselves out, just find it difficult not seeing Harris playing a key role on defensive in particular.

Sencire doesn’t have the handle, shot, or vision or change of pace to be a HM PG. Amazing point of attack defender, underrated help side shot blocker, athletic, quick as a Fox, team player… PG? No.

Combo · Jul 28, 2023

SkyysNotFalling said:
Would be absolutely shocked if this team finishes the entire year with less than 26 wins. They’re the most experienced & talented team top to bottom in the big ten by a wide margin.. only other team that compares is MSU. Purdue is a 1 trick pony.

We do have lots of experience and lots of depth. Except at the most important position on the floor. It's like you have a football team with lots of talent across the roster, but you don't have a quality QB so you try to convert a TE to PG. There's a real good chance that you won't be a very good team.

I really like our team at four of the five spots. TSJ is one of the best players in the conference. I love the three portal guys we got. Hawkins, I think is overrated by some, but he's still a solid Big Ten starter. If somehow Ty and/or DGL is able to give us quality play at the PG spot, we could be a really good team. But realistically, I wouldn't predict that. And w/o solid PG play, the whole will be less than the sum of the parts.