That's the Spirit? Why not say Wait until Groce lands Tilmon and Goodwin, this board will self-implode.
Its not like there is not a precedent for self-implosion and "nut-punches."
Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (April-June 2016)
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Its not like there is not a precedent for self-implosion and "nut-punches."
Bubba Eder
- Northeast Missouri
I heard him mention them but didn't hear him say he had a top three. I'm old, I may have missed it though.
Psycho 86
King Monkey Nut
- Mooresville,Indiana
You all are reading way too much into that interview. He acts exactly the same when answering any of the questions about Illinois or MSU or Kansas or whoever. There was no mention of a top 3. Look like two kids who were ready to go but had to stop and do another interview that asked the same questions as the previous one. They looked bored.
Wow things have changed for us very quickly smh.
I swear some people on here freak out over the smallest things. It was one interview and of course he's going to be talking about the new schools/new offers more so than Illinois. Is he supposed to keep mentioning the same stuff about his relationship with Groce? Why keep mentioning something that isn't news? Illinois has a good chance, but it's always going to be tough landing any kid with blue blood interest. This is only a nut punch if you truly believed in the silent verbal nonsense.
If Goodwin and Tilmon want to go elsewhere then let them go we gotta make do with what we got and hope other players that are here or committed here gets the ball rolling.
Yeah, that's been working out for us for 11 years now
PaytonHighstep
- Downers Grove, IL
yeah, he followed up the MSU, UNC, Kansas with a very mumbled "those are my top 3 schools" at the 1:46/1:47 mark of that video. That's what I heard at least.
Have they changed, really?
I'd say things will have changed if Tilmon DOES commit.
mattcoldagelli
- The Transfer Portal with Do Not Contact Tag
Right?
Freaking out over an interview comment, when what we should be freaking out about is having to hang the immediate future of our program on a wildly improbable recruiting hail mary.
IllinoisFan733
- Chicago
Tilmon would be amazing to get, but I don't think he will define the class as a failure if we miss out on him. Like all 5-star recruits, there is a chance they will go to a blue-blood no matter how early we got in with him.
IMO, Goodwin is the most important recruit to land. He would be a 4-year player that would really change the program with his competitiveness and drive to win. He's a true downstate recruit that would pair with Damonte and make Illinois a place to go to.
Add Goodwin, Terrance Lewis, Theo John, and somebody like Trent Frazier, Nojel Eastern, etc... and it's a Top 10 class for JFG and Illinois.
This is what I took from it to although I would say more uncomfortable than bored. Like they were preoccupied with finding the right cliches than saying anything of substance.
I sincerely hope that the jumpy, declarative, hyper-optimistic "insiders" here (and elsewhere, they weren't alone on the Tilmon thing) are not reflective of the actual opinions of our staff. I find it hard to believe that a seasoned college basketball coach like John Groce would be capable of being that naive.
Landing a top 10 class with the current state of Illinois basketball is wildly unrealistic in my opinion. Illinois is going to have to recruit kids ranked lower and hope that they outperform the "ranking". I am convinced the only reason Williams committed is because the big boys like Kansas were no longer interested. Kids ranked in the 60-100 range should be the hope. If the big boys come calling for Goodwin, which it looks like they will, I have no hope.
mattcoldagelli
- The Transfer Portal with Do Not Contact Tag
But we always have Wednesday
We're likely to land a top 10 class even if we miss on Tilmon and Goodwin since we're going to have a big class. Even getting a big like Negron and a guy like McKinley would get likely seal the deal in us finishing with a top 10 class based on who we already have.
We've been giving offers to small forwards for a while now and there's no concern at that position. The new offers are due to it being AAU season.
Highly unlikely IMO based on average rankings, which is the true measure, if we miss on Tilmon and Goodwin. We need these two players. For comparison, the 2011 class (link below) did not rank in the top 10 although it had some highly ranked players. Unless of course, you are able to land some top recruits from out of state (e.g., Indiana) but at this point it does not look likely either.
Illinois will need some highly ranked players who could immediately step in especially with the departure of Abrams, Tate, Nunn, Hill, Mav and Thorne (some may leave even earlier). Even with Tilmon and Goodwin, I doubt the turnaround will be immediate, but without a top class there is little hope for the direction of the program in the future.
http://247sports.com/Season/2011-Basketball/CompositeTeamRankings
You're right, I should have said 15-20 which isn't difficult to do when you have 5 or more recruits. Doesn't mean it's program changing or fills the holes.
It's nice to get the doom and gloom over with before November. Let's move on to some new names and faces this April and July!
I don't know about Goodwin, but person close to Tilmon's recruitment told me that Tilmon was likely to take visits. That was a month ago, when many on this board were indicating a silent verbal and/or imminent commitment.
I believe that both take visits and Illinois will likely make the short list for both. But that does not guarantee commitment.
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