Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (January-March 2016)

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#3,601      
Next 2 Wednesday's are Dead Periods.:)

well that stinks, it has to happen on a Wednesday, and it has to happen in the next two weeks. We've lost guys for lots of reasons, Groce's brother, Semrau's attitude, aau teammates, effin JaQuan Lyle, misleading parents, but this time seems like the calendar did us in.
 
#3,606      
I never feel optimistic anymore. I only believe things when they actually happen nowadays....Too many nut punches in the past few years has me seriously gun shy:mad::tsk:
 
#3,608      

illini39

Barrington, IL
Goodwin is indeed underrated in rankings because he doesn't have a high ceiling as a pro prospect without changing positions. He'll be as highly ranked as you can be for a 4 year player. As for Pickett, we'll see. A lot of the recruits we've sought have improved their rankings quite a bit, so it wouldn't be surprising at all if the committed guys improve their rank as well. I would bet money on Goodwin, Lewis and Pickett's rank going up. This board does have a terrible habit of hyping up recruits though.. in this case, I think it's actually fair.

I agree with all this Newman. The only one that could drop some might be Tillman. There is always a lot of movement at the top and you have to be on your game at all times to stay there. Then there is the dreaded "Illini" curse if he commits... that could cost a few spots as well. But... I am confident that this class if it comes together as a whole would rival the Henson (Gill, Bardo, Anderson, Smith, Small) group and the Self (Williams, Brown, Augustine, Spears, Wilson) group.
 
#3,609      
From what I recall Jabari Parker was the top player that year and Malcolm Hill was the consenus 2. The battle for 3 was between Nunn and another player I can't recall. I believe the other player was a stat stuffer/producer but wasn't regarded as high as Nunn at the next level.
 
#3,610      
From what I recall Jabari Parker was the top player that year and Malcolm Hill was the consenus 2. The battle for 3 was between Nunn and another player I can't recall. I believe the other player was a stat stuffer/producer but wasn't regarded as high as Nunn at the next level.

From 247, the top prospects in the state of Illinois in 2013 were as follows:

Jabari Parker - Duke
Kendrick Nunn - Illinois
Malcolm Hill - Illinois
Billy Garrett - DePaul
Sterling Brown - SMU
Kyle Davis - Dayton
Jaylon Tate - Illinois
Nate Taphorn - Northwestern
Alex Foster - Texas Tech
Alec Peters - Valpo
Ben Moore - SMU
Alvin Ellis - Michigan State

Honestly I'm not sure who you are referring to. Maybe Garrett or Brown?
 
#3,611      
From 247, the top prospects in the state of Illinois in 2013 were as follows:

Jabari Parker - Duke
Kendrick Nunn - Illinois
Malcolm Hill - Illinois
Billy Garrett - DePaul
Sterling Brown - SMU
Kyle Davis - Dayton
Jaylon Tate - Illinois
Nate Taphorn - Northwestern
Alex Foster - Texas Tech
Alec Peters - Valpo
Ben Moore - SMU
Alvin Ellis - Michigan State

Honestly I'm not sure who you are referring to. Maybe Garrett or Brown?

Kendall Stephens (Purdue) perhaps?
 
#3,613      
I believe that Garrett and Nunn were the players battling for third and Sterling Brown was considered a tweener by many. Would of been glad to have landed Garrett, he has holes in his game but drives the ball from the PG position and draws a lot of fouls. Surrounded with better talent and in a better system would of had a better career at Illinois. But we didn't offer Dad a job.
 
#3,614      
On the recruiting side, the coaches and players probably have a road map to committing. From the Damonte verbal it sounds like coaches new for a couple of months he was coming. I think with all the noise it is looking good for Illinois.

Another thing that helps Illinois is that many of their targets don't appear to be recruited by many of the big boys. The ones that have offered are also pursuing other players in the same position and can't spend the time and effort to recruit these players like Groce. Also Tilmon has had a chance to see players like Alexander, and Bragg (another 5 star big) sit at Kansas and Debassi? sit at Kentucky. If he has a two year timeline to declare I'm sure he wants to be a key player for two years and not sit for one.
 
#3,615      
On the recruiting side, the coaches and players probably have a road map to committing. From the Damonte verbal it sounds like coaches new for a couple of months he was coming. I think with all the noise it is looking good for Illinois.

Another thing that helps Illinois is that many of their targets don't appear to be recruited by many of the big boys. The ones that have offered are also pursuing other players in the same position and can't spend the time and effort to recruit these players like Groce. Also Tilmon has had a chance to see players like Alexander, and Bragg (another 5 star big) sit at Kansas and Debassi? sit at Kentucky. If he has a two year timeline to declare I'm sure he wants to be a key player for two years and not sit for one.

Good points. You have to wonder how Humphries not playing a significant role at UK and JCL having a great season at Illinois impacts the LaLu coaches chatting in Tilmon's ear.
 
#3,616      
I like how this recruitment hasn't been a dramatic one (like Cliff and Elijah's, although I still enjoyed Elijah's recruitment even though we didn't land him). Groce seems to do well with the more quiet recruitment's that aren't begging for attention all over social media and etc. Let's hope for the best!
 
#3,617      
Although I would normally be afraid of Kentucky, I'm not really that concerned at the moment. They will have their fair share of 5 star bigs, including ones that commit late after players decide to head to the draft. Kentucky becomes by far the biggest threat if Tilmon decides to wait a while. UNC is intriguing, but it's so far away and it sounds like Tilmon wouldn't want that kind of distance. UNC is doing well now but they don't have many big men locked up for the next two classes. They're a threat if they decide to go all in on Tilmon knowing that they're hurting recruiting locally against Duke.
 
#3,619      

illinifan87

The Windy City
Tilmon on ESPNU right now. I think we'd have him for at least 2 years. He's super talented but he's still a bit raw and needs to put on some weight.
 
#3,620      

midastouch11

New York, New York
Tilmon on ESPNU right now. I think we'd have him for at least 2 years. He's super talented but he's still a bit raw and needs to put on some weight.

I agree. I think that his big impact as a freshman would be defensively on the block and certainly with rebounding. Sophomore year he'd expand his offensive game and make that leap.
 
#3,621      
Tilmon on ESPNU right now. I think we'd have him for at least 2 years. He's super talented but he's still a bit raw and needs to put on some weight.

Keep in mind that he wouldn't play a college game for another 20 months. A lot can change. NBA teams draft on potential anyway.
 
#3,622      

CAHALL15

Central Illinois
I'm on the Terrence Lewis train. I watched a few more videos which isn't as good as watching live, but he seems to consistently have a smooth release above his head. He does have some long arms and if there is anyone who can maximize his physical abilities, I would bet Fletcher is the guy to do it. Beyond that, as another poster pointed out, being a coach's son generally means that the player has good habits and basketball IQ.

I'm thinking of Syracuse right now with their long athletes causing issues defensively for teams. If you have Lewis, Nichols, and DJW, that could be a start to something good, in that regard. Plus, as it stands now, he's a top 100 or close to it according to most recruiting services.
 
#3,623      

illinifan87

The Windy City
Keep in mind that he wouldn't play a college game for another 20 months. A lot can change. NBA teams draft on potential anyway.
True, but I think he'd be well served to spend a couple years in college. Kid has a chance to be a monster though.
 
#3,625      
Maybe this is a bit of a reach, but I think Mav's progress might be something Groce can use to show Tilmon a big can develop at Illinois.

It wouldn't be that hard to say "look at where he was and where he is now, and he does't have your raw talent. You give us the time and commitment, and we will make you better."
 
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