Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (April-June 2016)

Status
Not open for further replies.
#2,501      

combes

C
combes
illiniwil said:
i have a bad feeling about anymore top talent picking the illini in 07. it seems the longer we sit without another commit the more schools get involved. including blue bloods. i sure hope in wrong but it feels like Tilmon and Goodwin might be out the door. cna anybody talk me down off the ledge?
Click to expand...

It's early. I believe Illinois has more commitments (2) in the 2017 class than any other BT school.

Yes, it would have been nice to get them to pull the trigger earlier, but we are still strong with both.
 
#2,502      

Illiniguy13

Illiniguy13
Illiniguy13
illiniwil said:
i have a bad feeling about anymore top talent picking the illini in 07. it seems the longer we sit without another commit the more schools get involved. including blue bloods. i sure hope in wrong but it feels like Tilmon and Goodwin might be out the door. cna anybody talk me down off the ledge?
Click to expand...

They might be, they might not be. We don't know. What's fair to assume is that we have great relationships with both, and you can believe they're tight with Groce. I'm sure Damonte & Javon have been in both their ears, which helps. It definitely isn't in our favor that their recruitment has been ongoing, but most high profile recruits these days are letting the whole process unfold before making a decision. We all know we've had our fair share of bad luck the past few years on the recruiting front, but the basketball gods will throw good fortune our way too.

Look at it however you want to. I think we have as good a chance as anyone though, IMO.
 
Last edited:
#2,503      

Trakis

Trakis
Chicago, IL
Trakis
illiniwil said:
i have a bad feeling about anymore top talent picking the illini in 07. it seems the longer we sit without another commit the more schools get involved. including blue bloods. i sure hope in wrong but it feels like Tilmon and Goodwin might be out the door. cna anybody talk me down off the ledge?
Click to expand...

I kind of agree. I'm always going to be a pessimist about our recruiting until we come through. It's easier on me.
 
#2,504      

FatGreg

F
FatGreg
If the pessimists are right and we miss out on all our top targets (I don't have much of a feeling either way, although I agree that it's easier to prepare for disappointment), how would we all feel about a scenario like this:

-Groce doesn't have a great feeling about Goodwin or Terrence Lewis, so he goes hard after Charles Matthews, who transfers here and plays as a RS soph in 2017-18.

-We miss out on Tilmon, Culver, Goodwin, Lewis, Scruggs, Kris Wilkes, Justin Smith, Eastern, and our even less likely bluechip targets

-We land a class of (current 247 composite ranking in parentheses):
G - Da'Monte Williams (46)
G - Trent Frazier (108)
W - Javon Pickett (208)
W/CF - Christian Negron (199)
F/C - Theo John (123)

The 2017-18 roster then looks something like this:

PG - Te'Jon Lucas (SO)/Da'Monte Williams (FR)/Trent Frazier (FR)
G - Jalen Coleman Lands (JR)/Aaron Jordan (JR)
G/F - Charles Matthews (RS SO)/DJ Williams (JR)/Javon Pickett (FR)
PF - Leron Black (RS JR)/Kipper Nichols (RS SO)/Christian Negron (FR)
C - Michael Finke (RS JR)/Theo John (FR)

We'd be a little thin inside and the PG position would be promising but uncertain. That said, it looks like a tournament team to me and a possible top-25 team in 2018. I'd be disappointed with a class like that, but it could still serve as a nice bridge - a little like the 2007 class maybe. How does everyone else feel?
 
#2,505      

Rob07

R
San Francisco
Rob07
FatGreg said:
We'd be a little thin inside and the PG position would be promising but uncertain. That said, it looks like a tournament team to me and a possible top-25 team in 2018. I'd be disappointed with a class like that, but it could still serve as a nice bridge - a little like the 2007 class maybe. How does everyone else feel?
Click to expand...
I don't see that as a tournament team or a top-25 team a year later -- I haven't yet seen Groce coach 3-star players up the way some coaches (e.g. Ryan) were consistently able to. If that's the class we have coming in, I think Groce would be gone anyway with anything short of a S16 this season.
 
#2,506      

KnoxIllini2

KnoxIllini2
KnoxIllini2
I wouldn't be upset about that class but disappointed at what could have been. Most, I believe, would think Groce should be let go if we don't bring in the Top 10 class we've been clamoring for.

I think those are great pieces to build around and are the "Illini guys" we want. But will we win with only pieces and no keystones?
 
#2,507      

Newman

N
Newman
KnoxIllini2 said:
I wouldn't be upset about that class but disappointed at what could have been. Most, I believe, would think Groce should be let go if we don't bring in the Top 10 class we've been clamoring for.

I think those are great pieces to build around and are the "Illini guys" we want. But will we win with only pieces and no keystones?
Click to expand...

Groce will not be let go if we fail to land a top 10 class. The thing affecting his job security is winning. If we can land a couple of bigs, and a point guard in the 2017 class, we'll have a much more balanced roster than we've had the past 4 years. We can win with a balanced roster that doesn't have any true stars. Getting Theo John and Lewis may not sounds as flashy as Tilmon and Goodwin, but I would be thrilled with landing them.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
#2,508      

Bomb Squad 217

B
Bomb Squad 217
Don't let Theo Johns ranking fool you. He is going to explode sooner than later. Raw offensively but it's all there. Physical specimen. I would be excited about getting him should that happen.
 
#2,509      

t7nich

t7nich
Central IL
t7nich
Rob07 said:
I don't see that as a tournament team or a top-25 team a year later -- I haven't yet seen Groce coach 3-star players up the way some coaches (e.g. Ryan) were consistently able to. If that's the class we have coming in, I think Groce would be gone anyway with anything short of a S16 this season.
Click to expand...

The majority of that 2017/2018 team is 4 star recruits. Not sure if that helps or hurts the point you're trying to make.
 
#2,510      

t7nich

t7nich
Central IL
t7nich
Bomb Squad 217 said:
Don't let Theo Johns ranking fool you. He is going to explode sooner than later. Raw offensively but it's all there. Physical specimen. I would be excited about getting him should that happen.
Click to expand...

+1
 
#2,511      

Rob07

R
San Francisco
Rob07
t7nich said:
The majority of that 2017/2018 team is 4 star recruits. Not sure if that helps or hurts the point you're trying to make.
Click to expand...
Good point :eek: I suppose we would have 4-star talent at the 2-4, but would be starting a 3-star 1 (Lucas) and 5 (Finke). Still, I have been merely "whelmed" at best so far with the performance of Black and DJW as "4-star" recruits. (JCL is playing to his ranking.) I must be in a pessimistic mood today. Hopefully those guys show me how wrong I am this season.
 
#2,512      

jrichisamazing

J
jrichisamazing
Rob07 said:
Good point :eek: I suppose we would have 4-star talent at the 2-4, but would be starting a 3-star 1 (Lucas) and 5 (Finke). Still, I have been merely "whelmed" at best so far with the performance of Black and DJW as "4-star" recruits. (JCL is playing to his ranking.) I must be in a pessimistic mood today. Hopefully those guys show me how wrong I am this season.
Click to expand...

It's a bad idea to form an opinion on a players development based on their freshman season. You have to look at the players Groce has been able to coach for multiple years. What about Hill, Nunn, Rice, and Morgan? All 4 have shown good development. We really don't have much of a sample size to evaluate Groce's player development. That's why this season is so important.
 
#2,513      

Deleted member 10676

D
Guest
Deleted member 10676
#2,514      

Deleted member 4960

D
Guest
Deleted member 4960
Rob07 said:
Good point :eek: I suppose we would have 4-star talent at the 2-4, but would be starting a 3-star 1 (Lucas) and 5 (Finke). Still, I have been merely "whelmed" at best so far with the performance of Black and DJW as "4-star" recruits. (JCL is playing to his ranking.) I must be in a pessimistic mood today. Hopefully those guys show me how wrong I am this season.
Click to expand...

Most 4-star recruits do not usually have major impacts as freshman. Even 5 star recruits struggle unless they are starting from the beginning.
 
#2,518      

IlliniBrave75

IlliniBrave75
IlliniBrave75
14m14 minutes ago
Derek Piper ‏@DPiperScout
Nojel Eastern on #Illini hiring Dee Brown: It's good news to my ears. One of the best to ever do it. Would love to have him in the gym w/ me
 
#2,519      

Deleted member 10676

D
Guest
Deleted member 10676
#2,520      

IlliniBrave75

IlliniBrave75
IlliniBrave75
22m22 minutes ago
Derek Piper ‏@DPiperScout
#Illini target Nojel Eastern had 13 pts, 9 rebs & 3 asts in a close loss. But Eastern makes winning plays. Love his leadership & versatility


20m20 minutes ago
Derek Piper ‏@DPiperScout
Alonzo Verge got buckets today. Led MeanStreets with 18 points. Made a lot of things happen off the bounce.
 
#2,523      

Deleted member 10676

D
Guest
Deleted member 10676
I should add Theo John must be injured or hurting. Howard Pulley is only dressing six players but he only played 6 minutes. 0 pt 1 reb and 1 blk.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.