Foggy Notion
- San Francisco
Welcome to Illinois Loyalty.
Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (January-March 2016)
- Status
Welcome to Illinois Loyalty.
There are extremes on both sides, but I highly doubt the majority of posters had this emotional swing
TownieMatt
CU Expat
- Chicago
I don't disagree with most of your points here, although I don't think Rako will end up being a top 100 player nationally. The summer he had set him back hugely. The AAU circuit between a player's JR and SR year of high school is hugely important, and Rako was awful. We were far from the only school to jump ship at that point. If Rako continues to play well and show maturity, we won't be the only one of those schools to jump back in.
Do I think Rako will end up at Illinois? No. But I also can't say that this staff making a late run at him (as many others will do) "isn't going to happen."
Anyone who has seen Tejon Lucas play, how do you see him fitting in next year?
First, I guess I confused Austin and Lewis as I thought Austin got the scholly and Lewis didn't. My bad
Second, it doesn't matter who Tracy committed to, he is a kid who has given everything he has including an ACL and an achiles for this program. You keep him on scholly for next year NO MATTER WHAT!
As for Harry, something about our need and our sending a coach there for a week just tells me he needs to be bowled over on his other trips. He surely can see the oppurtunity here.
I certainly think he can contribute some. He is an upgrade over Tate in terms of being a scoring threat. This year he has done a good job of balancing setting up teammates and scoring himself, so I don't think there is any real worry about him not being a "true" pg. Part of it will depend on how quickly he can pick up on the defensive scheme. As with most incoming freshmen, especially those young for their grade, he needs to bulk up a bit.
Do you think it will be either Abrams or Lucas starting? Or will it be JCL, Nunn and Hill sharing the ball
What about Froling? Saw him leading break in his clips ( kidding of course but Froling does have good handles for a big guy)
With our injury luck who knows? If Tracy is really healthy, I would think he would start. I think the big thing for TJL is how consistently he can shoot. If he can force the defense to come out and guard it him it will open up a lot more room to drive and find teammates. A huge part of Tate's problem is the other team will just sag off him and prevent the drive knowing he won't shoot the ball.
With Hill, Nunn, and an improved JCL/Finke/AJ our offense won't be a problem next year. TJL's minutes will come from his ability to play defense and lead the offense. Both are things that freshmen are generally bad at. If Abrams is healthy then TJL could be a red-shirt candidate.
Ryllini
- Lombard
I think we have a gem in TJL. I think he is and will be a program defining point guard. The best part, he can still run the point and it shouldn't have any to do with D. Williams' recruitment, as I think DWILL wants to be more of an off guard.
Your crazy. You play your best players. Tate will be a SR. but Lucas is better than Tate right now. Not saying Lucas is great because he is an Illini recruit, but you are underestimating him. Are you basing this on his ranking or have you actually watched him play? No chance he redshirts, zero, none.
Yeah, there is no way Lucas sits out. I could see Lucas struggling with the level of competition like most freshman do and seeing spot minutes initially before really competing with Tate for the backup spot.
No way, IMO. I think he'll be our starting pg by the Big Ten season opener.
Deleted member 586966
D
Guest
Alright, I'll bite. What makes Lucas significantly better than his ranking or his size would suggest?
BirdDog9048
The Chief Lives
- Chicago, IL
I don't think anyone is questioning his talent. I think it's more of a size issue. Since he's young for his class, he'll need to gain a lot of strength before he's ready to defend the big boys.
I think he may well be under-rated based primarily on his youth for his class. Beyond that, he plays a position of real need. I don't know if he is 'we have our point guard' good, but he provides some hope that he may develop into 'we have our point guard.'
Not too many "big boys" at the point. Yogi and Mello are probably the two best and one graduates and the other is probably turning pro. That leaves a whole lot of meh.....
TL versus Simpson will be interesting to watch in coming years. Expect TL to get more tick then Simpson first year.
A freshman that is ready for the big ten is a rare bird
TownieMatt
CU Expat
- Chicago
I really like TJL, and everything I'm seeing points to a bit of a steal in recruiting, but I think we need to temper our expectations just a bit.
If healthy, I don't think there's any doubt that Tracy is our starting PG throughout next season. With the scoring ability this team has on the wings, our PG will need to be solid defensively and provide leadership. Tracy fits the bill.
I also don't think TJL will automatically jump ahead of Tate in the rotation either. As offensively challenged as he is, Tate still takes good care of the ball, and as a senior, will be a better defender than TJL straight out of high school.
TJL will see time next season, but he'll have to earn it by playing good defense and taking care of the ball (just as this year's freshman have).
If healthy, I don't think there's any doubt that Tracy is our starting PG throughout next season. With the scoring ability this team has on the wings, our PG will need to be solid defensively and provide leadership. Tracy fits the bill.
I also don't think TJL will automatically jump ahead of Tate in the rotation either. As offensively challenged as he is, Tate still takes good care of the ball, and as a senior, will be a better defender than TJL straight out of high school.
TJL will see time next season, but he'll have to earn it by playing good defense and taking care of the ball (just as this year's freshman have).
midastouch11
- New York, New York
I think most of this boils down to if Tracy Abrams is healthy. If Abrams is healthy then he starts and gets the lions share of the minutes at the point, if he's not healthy then I have to believe Lucas playing more minutes is best for the current team and the programs future.
- Status