Illini Basketball 2026-2027

#551      
NarrowJ
PleaseMakeABowlGame said:
MSU has more depth, it's not close.

Starting 5 (per Rothstein): Fears, Carr, Scott, Ward, Bonke.

Bench: Teng, Glenn (averaged 13/game at Eastern KY), Jervis (5 star freshman), Taylor (5 star freshman), Medlock (top 50 freshman).

MSU and USC are the deepest teams. Michigan would've been in that conversation had Cason played, but he transferred.
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Resident Illinois detractor strikes again *sigh*

Taylor is probably a far better player than Bonke, he'll eventually be in the starting lineup unless he gets the Izzo treatment (which is that he'll play seasoned upperclassmen over clearly more talented/but raw freshmen).

Love the touting of Glenn "averaged 13/game at Eastern KY" like that's impressive or something, haha, our top 100 freshmen are likely far better options.

Jervis is a 4 star, not a 5 star (checked every ranking service, he's not a 5 star anywhere... on3, 247, ESPN all have him at 4 star).

Our bench is anchored by seniors who played on a F4 team in Davis and Zvonimir and Morillo is certainly worth a mention if Medlock is. MSU's rotation relies more heavily on incoming freshmen and a smaller pool of returning wings to fill that out.
 
#552      
Illiniguy13
PleaseMakeABowlGame said:
MSU has more depth, it's not close.

Starting 5 (per Rothstein): Fears, Carr, Scott, Ward, Bonke.

Bench: Teng, Glenn (averaged 13/game at Eastern KY), Jervis (5 star freshman), Taylor (5 star freshman), Medlock (top 50 freshman).

MSU and USC are the deepest teams. Michigan would've been in that conversation had Cason played, but he transferred.
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Putting together a pretty epic troll resume
 
#553      
WhereDoWeStandWithStorr?
NarrowJ said:
I get a ton of flak on here for various things I argue about, but hopefully I've never gotten this pedantic.

Cameron Boozer played 33.5 minutes per game last season at the same exact height and weight as Mirkovic played at last year (and David is looking like he's going to be in a lot better physical shape this season).

33 minute average is certainly not impossible.
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Cam Boozer was the national player of the year, averaging 22.5 points, 10.2 boards, 4.1 assists.

His Torvik PORPAGATU rating of 7.6 was historic. He also had a 30.6% usage.

It's highly unlikely 1) Mirk is THAT level of player and 2) we'll be THAT reliant on him. Vaaks will most likely have the highest usage on the team, as the lead guard with the ball in his hands.

"Impossible" is a subjective conversation, but what you're arguing for has very low likelihood.
 
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#554      
WhereDoWeStandWithStorr?
21ChampaignSt said:
You might be right. I could be high on his minutes.

But mostly I just find your tolerance to error amusing.

Increase mpg by 1: Just right
Increase mpg by 3: Inconceivable!
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Inconceivable because guys of that prototype usually don't play that amount. But they do play 29-31.

And 3 minutes PER GAME is a big difference. 33.0 minutes per game last year would rank 208th in the country, while 30.0 would rank 570th.
 
#555      
Joel Goodson
NarrowJ said:
Resident Illinois detractor strikes again *sigh*

Taylor is probably a far better player than Bonke, he'll eventually be in the starting lineup unless he gets the Izzo treatment (which is that he'll play seasoned upperclassmen over clearly more talented/but raw freshmen).

Love the touting of Glenn "averaged 13/game at Eastern KY" like that's impressive or something, haha, our top 100 freshmen are likely far better options.

Jervis is a 4 star, not a 5 star (checked every ranking service, he's not a 5 star anywhere... on3, 247, ESPN all have him at 4 star).

Our bench is anchored by seniors who played on a F4 team in Davis and Zvonimir and Morillo is certainly worth a mention if Medlock is. MSU's rotation relies more heavily on incoming freshmen and a smaller pool of returning wings to fill that out.
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Illiniguy13 said:
Putting together a pretty epic troll resume
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PSA: ignore is your fren
 
#556      
BretMyBeachHouse
NarrowJ said:
I get a ton of flak on here for various things I argue about, but hopefully I've never gotten this pedantic.

Cameron Boozer played 33.5 minutes per game last season at the same exact height and weight as Mirkovic played at last year (and David is looking like he's going to be in a lot better physical shape this season).

33 minute average is certainly not impossible.
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Playing time for most players is about the delta between the him and the replacement. Right now, it seems to be pretty big which speaks to more minutes. Pace will matter some as well, but 33 minutes isn't out of line.
 
#557      
FrankNitty30
Calvin said:
I'd say typical is 7 at 10+. Guards can often play heavy minutes, but bigs usually have a back-up or need their fouls managed.
Specifically for Illlinois, last few years, we've had 6th - 8th over 10 min:
Ben - Jake - Big Z
Tre White - Morez - DGL
Luke - Justin - Dain
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I think the absolute end of the argument was the national championship game. Two team that combined to go 71-9 played the following people.

Michigan- played 8 guys. Their 8th guy played 6 mins. The believe in a deep bench so much that they played a hurt player 36 mins.

UCONN- played 9 guys. The 8th and 9th guys played 14 mins.
 
#559      
Fly Illini Fly!
Illiniguy13 said:
Putting together a pretty epic troll resume
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I don't think it's that absurd.

He listed 10 guys for them who are either: 1) are returning rotation players from a year ago 2) are transfers capable of being rotational big ten players 3) top 50 recruits.

Illinois has 8 that satisfy those requirements. By definition Michigan State is deeper.

How much that matters as far as best team is a different debate.

If you lined up the two teams today, MSU has the best player, but Illinois probably has the 3 next best players (or 5 of the next 6 depending on how we see Coen Carr).
 
#560      
Emerson Bigguns
NarrowJ said:
I get a ton of flak on here for various things I argue about, but hopefully I've never gotten this pedantic.

Cameron Boozer played 33.5 minutes per game last season at the same exact height and weight as Mirkovic played at last year (and David is looking like he's going to be in a lot better physical shape this season).

33 minute average is certainly not impossible.
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And if you consider the shape of Mirk's body last year, compared to some of the recent pictures...and his competitive mentality...it's certainly in play. I can't imagine he's going to be raising his hand for a sub very often...

Really the minutes distribution will likely have more to do with how the guys behind him come along, and the game scores. If like, Boozer, 85% of his best is better than the next guy on the bench, he's going to get those extra few minutes in close games.
 
#561      
Lee
IlliniShelt said:
3 minutes is huge. Heck I tell my wife that 1 minute is a long time
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Sexy Mood GIF by truTV
 
#562      
PleaseMakeABowlGame
Here's our minutes per game amongst rotation players added up in last 3 seasons:

2026: 8 guys - Keaton, Kylan, Andrej, Mirk, Tomi, Ben, Jake, Z combined for 204.5

2025: 9 guys - Kasparas, Will, Kylan, Ben, Tomi, Tre, Morez, DGL, Jake combined for 206.5 (yes, Jake counts)

2024: 9 guys - TSJ, Domask, Hawkins, Quincy, Ty, Dainja, Harmon, Goode, DGL combined for 203.7 (yes, DGL counts)

My guess would be that number inflates the more the team has injuries and players miss games? Anyways, let's say for next season the number is 204.

Vaaks - 32
Andrej - 32
Mirk - 31
Coleman - 28
Tomi - 26
Jake - 20
Z - 19
Morillo - 16

would be where I see it.
 
#566      
Det_Illini_fan
Emerson Bigguns said:
And if you consider the shape of Mirk's body last year, compared to some of the recent pictures...and his competitive mentality...it's certainly in play. I can't imagine he's going to be raising his hand for a sub very often...

Really the minutes distribution will likely have more to do with how the guys behind him come along, and the game scores. If like, Boozer, 85% of his best is better than the next guy on the bench, he's going to get those extra few minutes in close games.
Click to expand...
Sexy Mood GIF by truTV
 
#567      
NarrowJ
WhereDoWeStandWithStorr? said:
"Impossible" is a subjective conversation, but what you're arguing for has very low likelihood.
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Except it isn't subjective because "impossible" is black-and-white, geezus...

I do not think it has a low likelihood at all (though 'impossible' was the word I saw and latched on to), given:

1. He averaged 30 last year
2. Looks much more physically fit already
3. Ben Humrichous no longer exists on our roster

Joel Goodson said:
PSA: ignore is your fren
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I like to suffer through the moronic takes LIKE A REAL MAN lol
 
#568      
Calvin
FrankNitty30 said:
I think the absolute end of the argument was the national championship game. Two team that combined to go 71-9 played the following people.

Michigan- played 8 guys. Their 8th guy played 6 mins. The believe in a deep bench so much that they played a hurt player 36 mins.

UCONN- played 9 guys. The 8th and 9th guys played 14 mins.
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Not sure I follow. You're saying the national champ played their 8th guy 6 minutes, which is less than 10, so that's 7 guys at 10+, whereas UConn played 9 at 10+?
Both those teams were considered pretty deep but the championship game both only went 7 deep. Box score
 
#570      
Fly Illini Fly!
PleaseMakeABowlGame said:
Here's our minutes per game amongst rotation players added up in last 3 seasons:

2026: 8 guys - Keaton, Kylan, Andrej, Mirk, Tomi, Ben, Jake, Z combined for 204.5

2025: 9 guys - Kasparas, Will, Kylan, Ben, Tomi, Tre, Morez, DGL, Jake combined for 206.5 (yes, Jake counts)

2024: 9 guys - TSJ, Domask, Hawkins, Quincy, Ty, Dainja, Harmon, Goode, DGL combined for 203.7 (yes, DGL counts)

My guess would be that number inflates the more the team has injuries and players miss games? Anyways, let's say for next season the number is 204.

Vaaks - 32
Andrej - 32
Mirk - 31
Coleman - 28
Tomi - 26
Jake - 20
Z - 19
Morillo - 16

would be where I see it.
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NarrowJ said:
Except it isn't subjective because "impossible" is black-and-white, geezus...

I do not think it has a low likelihood at all (though 'impossible' was the word I saw and latched on to), given:

1. He averaged 30 last year
2. Looks much more physically fit already
3. Ben Humrichous no longer exists on our roster
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The hill I'll stand on until proven otherwise... is that our assist leader will lead the team in minutes. It's literally happened every season Brad's been here.

My bet as of today would be Vaaks.

I do hope Andrej gets more minutes. 13.5 points in 26.3 minutes -- along with 31.2 points per 100 poss -- is terrific scoring production. Almost certain he would've averaged 16/game last year if he played 32min a night. He's also our best defender, and improving 24% from 3 would go long ways. Could reasonably the best two way player in the B10.

Zvonimir's minutes also fascinate me. If he can clinch the majority of non-Mirk minutes at the 4, there's a real chance for him to get to 20+ minutes. Could split something like 14 at Center / 6 at PF.
 
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#573      
RollChief
NarrowJ said:
Resident Illinois detractor strikes again *sigh*

Taylor is probably a far better player than Bonke, he'll eventually be in the starting lineup unless he gets the Izzo treatment (which is that he'll play seasoned upperclassmen over clearly more talented/but raw freshmen).

Love the touting of Glenn "averaged 13/game at Eastern KY" like that's impressive or something, haha, our top 100 freshmen are likely far better options.

Jervis is a 4 star, not a 5 star (checked every ranking service, he's not a 5 star anywhere... on3, 247, ESPN all have him at 4 star).

Our bench is anchored by seniors who played on a F4 team in Davis and Zvonimir and Morillo is certainly worth a mention if Medlock is. MSU's rotation relies more heavily on incoming freshmen and a smaller pool of returning wings to fill that out.
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I think this guy has to be trolling at this point.

The "averaged 13/game at Eastern Kentucky" is pretty funny, but the notion that they "have more depth, and it's not even close" is nuts.

I watched most of the FIBA U18 Americup and haven't seen Morillo play yet, but I would still take Coleman and Morillo over Jervis and Taylor any day. Taylor did not look great against 17-year-olds, and from watching him, I seriously doubt he'll be serviceable in the B1G.

At least Jaxon Kohler could shoot, but he and Carson Cooper are being replaced by a non-shooting Freshman big and a guy from Charlotte who shot 38 threes last year at 34%. They have an elite backcourt but IMO the lack of spacing in the frontcourt is going to give the backcourt serious problems.

I don't know what I'm missing here but I simply don't see the hype with MSU because of how much of a step back their frontcourt is taking. I also don't see how they have better depth than us, how a Teng, a guy from EKU, and two (frankly unimpressive) Freshman are better than Jake Davis, Z, Morillo, and whoever else produces from our Freshman class is beyond me.

We're playing them at home this year, give me Illinois by 20.
 
#575      
NarrowJ
Fly Illini Fly! said:
The hill I'll stand on until proven otherwise... is that our assist leader will lead the team in minutes. It's literally happened every season Brad's been here.

My bet as of today would be Vaaks.

I do hope Andrej gets more minutes. 13.5 points in 26.3 minutes -- along with 31.2 points per 100 poss -- is terrific scoring production. Almost certain he would've averaged 16/game last year if he played 32min a night. He's also our best defender, and improving 24% from 3 would go long ways. Could reasonably the best two way player in the B10.

Zvonimir's minutes also fascinate me. If he can clinch the majority of non-Mirk minutes at the 4, there's a real chance for him to get to 20+ minutes. Could split something like 14 at Center / 6 at PF.
Click to expand...

Finding some way to play Z and Tomi together more this year is one of my biggest hopes. If Z makes a big jump this year, I don't think we can keep him under 20-22 minutes per game and Tomi will still be in the mid-to-upper 20s.

Which that is the antithesis to the Mirkovic 33 minutes per game argument. I actually want him to play less than 33, and I want the reason to be because Z (and Tomi too) are more effective players and can be on the floor at the same time more often.
 
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