Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (Week of April 12th, 2021)

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#726      

the national

the national
the Front Range
the national
sacraig said:
Also, a special shout out to all the "insiders" out there who correctly pegged this one. (y)

mJSGonM.gif
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jimmy fallon applause GIF by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

well done, sir. Well done.
 
#727      

FollowMeDontFollowMe

F
FollowMeDontFollowMe
JW said:
Fair points.

I hate to beat up on him, but Weber is a great coach at a program like Southern Illinois or Dayton or Marquette or Dayton or possibly Kansas State, but not at Illinois. We are a demanding fan base and I feel the Chicagoland media market has always been out to get us (they certainly enjoyed that Loyola game), and the CLP, which has lost importance, was never friendly to us.

We were lucky to have Self. He was never going to stay, and I don't recall who was available in 2003. Weber was on the rise and I will never take that 2005 season away from him. I've been pontificating on "what could have been for Illinois" but even if Weber had recruited better in 2004-2006, and even if he hadn't had some of the player issues that unfortunately occurred, I don't think he was the coach our fans would accept. Whether it was 2012 or 2020, he wasn't going to be Lou Henson.

As for Groce, I do specifically recall that when it became apparent that Weber had to go, nobody wanted the job. Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens both declined, as did several other potential coaches. Groce was a nice guy but he belongs at a place like Akron. And even if Kendrick Nunn hadn't punched his girlfriend in the head, potentially Groce would have a few better seasons, but likely in the long run the same result. But who knows? Maybe Nunn has a senior season like Ayo had his junior season and we go in a different direction.

This is why are so lucky to have Underwood. He recruits and develops players and he wins. He was insulted by Oklahoma State's offer and so far seems very satisfied with us. I think he can take Illinois basketball to a consistent contender in the Big Ten and competitive in the big dance. And I think he stays, which can't be said Lon Krueger nor Bill Self.

That's sort of how why we hired Weber. After Lon Krueger for 4 years then dumping us for the NBA, and Bill Self for 3 years then jumping ship for Kansas, I think there was a realization that we are not UNC or Kentucky. If we land a UNC or Kentucky (or Kansas!) calibre coach, we may quickly find ourselves on the market when he leaves us.
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Illinois poached Krueger from a Florida team that just went to the final four which shows the value of the job.

Krueger also went to the NBA in the era that Patino left Kentucky of all places for the NBA so I don’t see that move as an insult to the program.

Self was obviously a great hire.

Then Weber took the Illini to the Championship game while Self was being Bucknelled in the first round, and everything seemed great...
 
#728      

illinitiger

I
illinitiger
FollowMeDontFollowMe said:
You make good points but I wonder if that applies more to John Groce than Weber. Weber has basically steamrolled two programs over the last 20 years.

What if the Miami out of bounds is called correctly? What if Snider signs?

Weber inherited a lot in his jobs. That’s why I’m so grateful for this staff because they’ve built their success themselves so in a down year I think they’ll be able to build it back again.
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I think there are alot of near misses for Groce had that could have changed the trajectory for him at Illinois. Jalen Brunson comes to mind and Snider maybe...of course Miami game and I still think if he installed Hill and Nunn earlier as Freshman starters we make tourney in 2014. everything happens for a reason though.

One thing I admire about BU is he seems to be a "process" and principle guy and he hires great staff...which I believe results in sustained success.
 
#729      

QCtoKC

QCtoKC
QCtoKC
illinitiger said:
One thing I admire about BU is he seems to be a "process" and principle guy and he hires great staff...which I believe results in sustained success.
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You are 100% correct. I don’t proclaim to be a great business mind but in my experience the process people have better long-term success. Underwood is definitely one of these types.
 
#730      

altenberger22

altenberger22
South Carolina
altenberger22
Preacherbubba said:
I graduated in 79
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Lucky guy you are! You got to witness and/or partake in:

* Eddie Johnson's last second shot in the home victory vs. #1 MSU and Magic Johnson
* home sellouts (~70,000) in the fall for Dad's Day, regardless of whom the opponent happened to be
* 14 cent beers at Dooley's/Kam's because the Illini football team was ranked #14 in the AP poll, and
* broken noses in Intramural football because punts were live plays and rushing the kicker was allowed

"And yes, I walked to class --- 32 block round trip, uphill both ways --- in record cold and snow. That's the way it was back then, and I liked it!"
 
#731      

WINT

W
Kewanee, IL
WINT
Is Curbelo going to take #11? I believe I remember him having that number before Ayo decided to come back.
 
#732      

Deleted member 8896

D
Guest
Deleted member 8896
I thought Weber was the real deal in 2001 when I watched his Saluki team almost beat us in Las Vegas. Frank Williams had a horrible game and Weber’s team played as hard a game as an under matched talent -wise team ever played.
 
#733      

Travis1173

Travis1173
Travis1173
Kordell Charles re-opened his recruitment.....although I can’t find where he ever actually committed anywhere. Was down to a final 3 of Illinois, Marquette and Tulsa.
 
#734      

Illinivek23

Illinivek23
Gurnee
Illinivek23
altenberger22 said:
Lucky guy you are! You got to witness and/or partake in:

* Eddie Johnson's last second shot in the home victory vs. #1 MSU and Magic Johnson
* home sellouts (~70,000) in the fall for Dad's Day, regardless of whom the opponent happened to be
* 14 cent beers at Dooley's/Kam's because the Illini football team was ranked #14 in the AP poll, and
* broken noses in Intramural football because punts were live plays and rushing the kicker was allowed

"And yes, I walked to class --- 32 block round trip, uphill both ways --- in record cold and snow. That's the way it was back then, and I liked it!"
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Yes - from Forbes (RIP) to Loomis!
 
#735      

Oldskoolkoach

O
Oldskoolkoach
FollowMeDontFollowMe said:
You all should appreciate this. This thread is like the after hours of a great party no one wants to leave.
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But nobody is partying any longer.

-Instead, we have the guy in the corner (Bill) selling frozen ketchup popsicles to the ladies with white gloves and dresses on.
-Susan is giving a speech about the best recipe to make corndogs that she won her State 4H title with.
-Larry is reminiscing about the killer party he threw in the summer of 69 and only 2 people showed.
-Lastly, Rita, she is still partying like a Rockstar and wondering why nobody else is, and wonders why they are still here.
 
#739      

soupy17

soupy17
MI
soupy17
illiniguy said:
Nope, none at all, why on earth would anyone ever want to post about that??? :ROFLMAO:

Does anyone have any thoughts on who was a better recruiter, Weber or BU? :unsure:
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Miller certainly had a bit more hype around him as a Mr. Basketball. Going by RSCI Miller was #29 vs. Kendrick at #57, which is not a negligible difference. In terms of pure talent though, it may be hard to say as you can't be sure how much of the rankings or hype around Kendrick was affected by not being the best player or focal point on his high school team.

Their freshman year stats are not too different. Their per 40 stats are very similar. Nunn's shooting percentages were slightly better but also turned the ball over a bit more.
 
#740      

Poe's Law

P
Poe's Law
Travis1173 said:
Does anyone else find it odd that Miller is in the portal, yet his Twitter picture is of him after winning the big ten championship and his pinned tweet is still the Do We Have Your Attention after spanking Michigan?
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We probably pay more attention to his official Twitter than he does.
 
#744      

Travis1173

Travis1173
Travis1173
Oldskoolkoach said:
But nobody is partying any longer.

-Instead, we have the guy in the corner (Bill) selling frozen ketchup popsicles to the ladies with white gloves and dresses on.
-Susan is giving a speech about the best recipe to make corndogs that she won her State 4H title with.
-Larry is reminiscing about the killer party he threw in the summer of 69 and only 2 people showed.
-Lastly, Rita, she is still partying like a Rockstar and wondering why nobody else is, and wonders why they are still here.
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Well, Jimmy quit and Joey got married, so what else is Larry supposed to do?
 
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