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

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#702      
Dad is very involved in baseball in the Quad Cities. Played at St. Ambrose. Coached at Alleman. Currently officer with both Quad Cities Hitman and QCFieldersChoice.
I'll have to talk with my son B.J. I'm sure he has dealt with them. Thanks for the info though!
 
#705      

B-ILL

Working From Home
This is sheer brilliance! Did you make this, or did you find it?
It's a 100% B-ILL original. Thank you very much.

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10 minutes on Photoshop can get you 50+ likes on a college team internet sports forum!
 
#706      
We've had a lot of bad luck. As I've gotten older I start to see how a bad bounce here or a good bounce there can change an entire trajectory.

I imagine many programs struggle because our student-athletes are really just boys, boys put in very difficult situations that they may not have maturity to handle in the public spotlight.

But I do believe things could have been different. Nunn was having a great career at Illinois and trending upward until a legal matter caused him to leave.

Bruce Weber, for all his failings, seems to have had a disproportionate share unfortunate events. Both Brian Carlwell and Jamar Smith showed promise. We will never know...
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.
 
#709      
This really puts into perspective how much better Underwood + staff is at identifying talent, fit, and coaching recruits up to become huge contributors while being more malleable with his system compared to previous staffs. Granted, Frazier was a Groce find, but still, not a single top 15 recruiting class (and only one transfer contributing) and we end up as a #1 seed after just 4 years. Pretty incredible work.

Has to look up "malleable" before agreeing entirely.
 
#712      

Route47

Illinois
Just in case you thought this wasn't Loyalty...we get a great class addition today....and three pages of arguing about Weber vs. BU recruiting.

Yeah.

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Even worse...I read every post...and I have absolutely no clue wtf position each of you were taking.

POST OF THE YEAR
 
#715      
Does anyone have any thoughts on who was a better 18 year old, AM or Kendrick?
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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#717      
Jereme Richmond committed to Weber in 2006 when he was a freshman in high school and was generally considered one of the top players in the country and a sure one-and-done.

But by the time he was a senior he was still a great recruit but certainly not on the express train to the NBA.

Sadly, by 2013 he was in prison.

I always wonder what could have been if Richmond had buckled down, put in the work, stayed out of troubled and maximized his potential?

The same for Crandall Head and Kendrick Nunn. And if Carlwell and Jamar Smith hadn't been drinking that night.
Kendrick is doing fine, no need to wonder.
 
#718      
Just in case you thought this wasn't Loyalty...we get a great class addition today....and three pages of arguing about Weber vs. BU recruiting.

Yeah.

6e32c8c95efdf3df641f1c6eb58e1c01.gif


Even worse...I read every post...and I have absolutely no clue wtf position each of you were taking.
It’s anticlimactic when the insiders are correct.
 
#720      
Does anyone have any thoughts on who was a better 18 year old, AM or Kendrick?
Defensively Nunn was better. He didnt get to shine alot on offense & was the second option his whole high school career. Miller was good during his first two years( freshman in Peoria, sophomore at mp)then was a real offensive weapon the last two years. I'd say Miller was a 18 year old
 
#721      

JW

Vancouver
Kendrick is doing fine, no need to wonder.

You missed my point. Right over your head my friend. I was wondering about Illinois. That was the pretty clear theme of my thread. I'm not pontificating on Kendrick's career. I'm considering how some bad luck/bad decisions set us back.

How our teams could have been better but for a series of events, including Kendrick being dismissed from Illinois for beating his girlfriend. And Jamar Smith getting drunk and crashing his car with Carlwell in the passenger seat.
 
#722      
Defensively Nunn was better. He didnt get to shine alot on offense & was the second option his whole high school career. Miller was good during his first two years( freshman in Peoria, sophomore at mp)then was a real offensive weapon the last two years. I'd say Miller was a 18 year old
doh.gif
 
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#724      

JW

Vancouver
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.
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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#725      
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.
Both Kruger and Self did leave us. In the end, it doesn't change the result, but I've found justification in Kruger's departure, but will never forget how classless Self handled his.
 
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