Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (July 2018)

[jrichisamazing]

Last year was pretty darn good despite some early misses and issues finding bigs. To be fair, the big misses have come when Ward makes his early proclamations like that one.

Our average 247 composite ranking is 90.01 which is good for 10th in the B1G. I wouldn't consider that good. Hopefully we have a much better Fall so we aren't scrambling again.

 

[sacraig]

I watched Timme play at the AAU event in Dallas and just wasnt that impressed by him. He also didnt seem to hustle up & down the court.

I am going to go out on a limb here and trust Coach K's evaluation over yours.

 

[Illwinsagain]

Our average 247 composite ranking is 90.01 which is good for 10th in the B1G. I wouldn't consider that good. Hopefully we have a much better Fall so we aren't scrambling again.

Actually, for 6 players, that is pretty good. Unless you are UK.

 

[TCTORNADO]

Not sure of what to think of this, but Liddell with a Wisconsin offer.

 

[TCTORNADO]

Does anybody know what day Underwood is having his knee surgery?

 

[t7nich]

Drew Timme with an offer from Michigan State

 

[3 point girl]

I am going to go out on a limb here and trust Coach K's evaluation over yours.

The site I looked at said Duke's interest was "mild" , so if he gets an offer from Coach K he should jump all over it.

 

[redriver]

I like the crystal ball breakdown here more than most, just seems odd. Insert analogy about cart before the horse.

I have no inside info, but it was often said in the old days that sometimes Duke wouldn't offer (publicly), unless the prospect had already acknowledged he would accept. That certainly doesn't apply to everyone they recruit, but it is somewhat believable to me. Save face type of ....
I know people believe what they want to believe, so maybe it is just my opinion of Duke. They certainly like to put a façade on their program. See Dickie V.

 

[illinitiger]

The site I looked at said Duke's interest was "mild" , so if he gets an offer from Coach K he should jump all over it.

He may not "jump all over" if he thinks that means hes at end of bench. On a related note...Blue bloods who live-die on one and dones may realize that the "top10" cupboard may be empty in 20 or 21.

 

[Dan]

Here at NY2LA Summer Jam.. #Illini assistant Chin Coleman spotted up to see priority big man target Kofi Cockburn. Kansas head man Bill Self here as well.
https://twitter.com/DPiper247/status/1019733938762330112

Kofi Cockburn is so big and powerful inside but is impressive with how well he moves at his size. Elite rebounder & finisher. Hit a short jumper too
https://twitter.com/scottybscout/status/1019741253791961088

Add John Calipari to the group of head coaches watching a matchup of five-star bigs. Kofi Cockburn has been a monster here early through second half
https://twitter.com/ebosshoops/status/1019740739247443968

 

[TCTORNADO]

Getting Kofi would be like getting Arrelious and Tez.

 

[illini80]

Hope we have some strong plan b guys in the works. We are not going to win many, if any, of these head to head battles with the blue bloods for 5*'s. Nice to be a player, but we may spend 2 years doing a great job and then lose out last minute when the big boys swoop in.

 

[IlliniinIowa]

Hope we have some strong plan b guys in the works. We are not going to win many, if any, of these head to head battles with the blue bloods for 5*'s. Nice to be a player, but we may spend 2 years doing a great job and then lose out last minute when the big boys swoop in.

This has been an all to familiar scenario the last 20 years or so, but do we finally have a staff that can buck that trend?

 

[IlliniBrave75]

Eric Bossi's Summer Jam Blog: Wednesday

IT WOULD BE WISE TO BUY STOCK IN TERRENCE SHANNON JR.

It doesn't take much of a trained eye to realize that top 75 wing Terrence Shannon Jr. of the Mac Irvin Fire is a legitimate high major prospect. He's got a great motor, makes plays in transition and seems to expand his game each time out. But, the more I peel back the layers of how he got to be the player he is and how much room he has for growth, the more I feel big time programs should be buying stock.

Consider this, Shannon is still only 17 even though he graduated in the spring. Because of his youth he's headed to Woodstock Academy in Connecticut for a prep year. On top of him being young and still maturing, this upcoming prep year will be Shannon's first ever as a fulltime basketball player. Throughout his high school years in Chicago he played football as well where he starred as a quarterback and wide receiver.

It all adds up to extreme upside and if I were a betting man I'd bet on him being much better than he already is by this time next year.

https://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/eric-bossi-s-summer-jam-blog-

 

[FeelYourPaign]

Wait a minute! If Shannon has graduated, why aren't we signing him now? Tell him to take a Red Shirt his first year, get a leg up on classes, learn our system, and come out on fire as a RS Frosh?

Love that idea !
Let Fletch get involved as well. Nothing but plusses

 

[Tacomallini]

Hope we have some strong plan b guys in the works. We are not going to win many, if any, of these head to head battles with the blue bloods for 5*'s. Nice to be a player, but we may spend 2 years doing a great job and then lose out last minute when the big boys swoop in.

if there's one thing that this staff has demonstrated they do very well at this point, imho, it's having plan b guys in the works. look how well we've done filling out the roster for this year following a losing record season, with no official visits left.

 

[Newman]

if there's one thing that this staff has demonstrated they do very well at this point, imho, it's having plan b guys in the works. look how well we've done filling out the roster for this year following a losing record season, with no official visits left.

They're not all plan B. Some are plan C and D.

 

[TCTORNADO]

They're not all plan B. Some are plan C and D.

When you wait until Spring to fill 80% of your class that happens.

 

[bobbob]

Wait a minute! If Shannon has graduated, why aren't we signing him now? Tell him to take a Red Shirt his first year, get a leg up on classes, learn our system, and come out on fire as a RS Frosh?

He's going to a prep school. That implies that he likely is missing a core class or two and isn't eligible for the NCAA yet. If he graduated HS early, that makes sense. That's what I'm reading between the lines here.

 

[Joel Goodson]

When you wait until Spring to fill 80% of your class that happens.

Granted, but that was certainly not by our staff's choice.

 

[mhuml32]

Wait a minute! If Shannon has graduated, why aren't we signing him now? Tell him to take a Red Shirt his first year, get a leg up on classes, learn our system, and come out on fire as a RS Frosh?

I'm sure there's an obvious answer (Shannon is not rushing his choice, wanting a better offer, coaching staff wants to wait, etc), but this was my first reaction as well.

 

[Joel Goodson]

He's going to a prep school. That implies that he likely is missing a core class or two and isn't eligible for the NCAA yet. If he graduated HS early, that makes sense. That's what I'm reading between the lines here.

I read an article on a recruiting web site ~1 month ago that he's fully qualified (sorry, no link). If that's true, he's going the prep school route to raise his profile, really work on his game and be able to hit the ground running in his freshman year. Given that he's still 17 and has just burst onto the high profile scene, his rationale is understandable.

 

[TCTORNADO]

Eric Bossi: Whitney can play anywhere in America."

 

[KnoxIllini2]

And we'll continue to hope that "Anywhere" translates to Chambana.

 

[blackdog]

I read an article on a recruiting web site ~1 month ago that he's fully qualified (sorry, no link). If that's true, he's going the prep school route to raise his profile, really work on his game and be able to hit the ground running in his freshman year. Given that he's still 17 and has just burst onto the high profile scene, his rationale is understandable.

Also the article mentioned that he has always split his time between basketball and football so this would give him a year to fully focus on basketball. Could really see his game grow if that's the case. Probably a smart move on his part to avoid a potential Mark Smith like situation.