Illini Basketball 2026-2027

#326      
HouTexIllini
OrangeBlue98 said:
If he’s not the best AD in the country, it doesn’t take long to call the roll of those better.
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We have a really good one and I love the way he handled the TJ Shannon situation. But, the University of Texas has Chris Del Conte who has done extremely well and they’ve won three consecutive Directors Cups for the best athletic program based on performances of the teams throughout the program. The coaches he’s hired since he was hired in 2017 have won 15 NCAA championships.
 
#327      
BTM33
I'm on the record that I think Vaaks is gonna be...awesome...not just good, but awesome.

I think the sky is the limit and he's a no doubt NBA draft pick next year. I think he's going to be that good.
 
#330      
OrangeBlue98
HouTexIllini said:
We have a really good one and I love the way he handled the TJ Shannon situation. But, the University of Texas has Chris Del Conte who has done extremely well and they’ve won three consecutive Directors Cups for the best athletic program based on performances of the teams throughout the program. The coaches he’s hired since he was hired in 2017 have won 15 NCAA championships.
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Not really disagreeing with you, but 1) Texas has significantly more resources and 2) has Texas been any better relative to history and expectations in football and men’s basketball?
 
#331      
nichi
PepeSilvia said:
Morillo is a top 50ish recruit and so was Ty who didn't do much as a freshman. So I wouldn't necessarily even expect Morillo to give the production Harmon did.

Maybe he will, but top 50 guys aren't always ready to produce as freshman(some top 10 guys aren't).
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Ty Rodgers 247 59 rsci 57
Lucas Morillo 247 47 rsci 47

Ty didn't put up numbers, but he played rotation minutes. Other top 50ish recruits the last 25 years played a similar or greater role as freshmen..

Kofi Cockburn was 247 46 rsci 43; Deron Williams was rsci 48; Andre Curbelo was 247 47 rsci 45.

Others: Brandon Paul rsci 49; Kendrick Nunn 247 55 rsci 57; Leron Black 247 43 rsci 46; Brian Randle rsci 53

The 247 ranks are composite
 
#333      
NarrowJ
nichi said:
Ty Rodgers 247 59 rsci 57
Lucas Morillo 247 47 rsci 47

Ty didn't put up numbers, but he played rotation minutes. Other top 50ish recruits the last 25 years played a similar or greater role as freshmen..

Kofi Cockburn was 247 46 rsci 43; Deron Williams was rsci 48; Andre Curbelo was 247 47 rsci 45.

Others: Brandon Paul rsci 49; Kendrick Nunn 247 55 rsci 57; Leron Black 247 43 rsci 46; Brian Randle rsci 53

The 247 ranks are composite
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But don’t you know we must always imagine the worst case scenario?

But, if it were me, there are much more entertaining things to discuss if we have to play devils advocate. What if Vaaks blows out his knee playing for the national team? What if Andrej quits basketball to become a male model? What if Brad takes an assistant job with Dusty in Dallas?

We are leaving a lot of meat on this bone.
 
#334      
Illini22
jamarvelous31 said:
Are there anymore games soon he's playing in?
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The game where the recent highlights are from was a preparatory friendly for Estonia's World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia and the Czech Republic.

Slovenia: Friday (July 3), 11:00 AM Champaign time
Czech Republic: Monday (July 6), 9:00 AM Champaign time

I don't know if that's allowed here, but I can probably find a stream link if there is interest.
 
#335      
RabidDawgClassic
Illini22 said:
The game where the recent highlights are from was a preparatory friendly for Estonia's World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia and the Czech Republic.

Slovenia: Friday (July 3), 11:00 AM Champaign time
Czech Republic: Monday (July 6), 9:00 AM Champaign time

I don't know if that's allowed here, but I can probably find a stream link if there is interest.
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Yes please!

Edit: younger me would have a hard time contemplating that older me would ever care about Estonian basketball. 😂
 
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