Pronounced Pah-nich of course
Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread
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Well, Coleman got $2 million which was huge last year(this year not so much) so you would assume there would be similar inflation.
What if every team contributed a portion of their NIL money and teams' players were paid a certain amount for making the tournament and then paid extra to divvy up for each additional win in the tournament?
It would be nice if there was some incentive for people to stay with programs that are likely to develop and be good, because that is what we are missing right now. Does Coleman Hawkins really care all that much that Kansas State doesn't make the NCAA tournament as long as his $2,000,000 spends?
Probably a pipe dream, but I think that would solve some of this nonsense for the players without legitimate NBA aspirations.
The positive is that its about who you get, not who you miss on. More names will emerge.
I think there have to be contracts of some sort or a sit out penalty for transferring. If the money is there to pay them I have no problem with it., but making sure they (relatively)stay put would likely keep the money coming in. People like who they know. Example - I was thrilled with Jake Davis coming back. Would I have been equally excited to have a some new guy come in with his exact profile? Not so much. Plus, who is going to spend $3 million on a guy if they can't play for a year?
Seems to me that Ty slimmed down to play more of a backcourt role.Maybe puts weight back on to battle with a physical 4.
I'll say it's looking less likely by the day that Illinois lands Sarr. He really wants to stay in the NBA Draft, and now Duke is pouring more resources into securing his commitment if he decides his NBA dream needs to be on hold for one more year.
Noblesville Illini
- Nappanee, IN
I certainly want a 4 that can shoot. I too hope that Ty Rodgers has developed his shooting skills. Just having Ty back adds a lot to the team. If he's added a shot, that would add even more to the team! I'm pulling for Ty.
Regarding my "height demands" for a PF, I was just going through a list of available Forwards in the transfer portal. (That list is shortening every day.) But JaMichael Stillwell (Milwaukee) at 6'8", 225 pounds, sounds like he might fit your standards (and mine too). His 10.7 rebounds/game really caught my attention. Sounds like he's a dawg on the boards and probably defense too. I'd hope that his athleticism would allow him to defend some of those Houston-type players.
I agree with your guess that the 4-spot next year (if nothing changes) will be a mix of Big Z, Mirkovic, and Ty Rodgers. Neither Big Z nor Mirkovic will be able to defend those Houston-type players. Rodgers might be able to adequately defend them, but if he hasn't developed a shot, we will be at a huge disadvantage on offense with Ty at the 4.
How about a player like Tre Carroll (a Junior) of Florida Atlantic? He's a 6'7", 233-pound Forward, who averaged 12.2 points/game, 5.6 rebounds/game, and 1.6 assists/game this past season, while shooting 52.3% on FGs, including 38.8% on 3-pointers, and 75.5% on FTs. I have no idea whether he's a good defender.
I think that Dame Sarr is listed for the Nike Hoops Summit as 6'7.5" tall, 189 pounds, with a 6'11.75" wingspan. I'm reading on this site that Sarr would be a SF/Wing/3 for the Illini. I think that's probably right. But I have also heard speculation that Sarr could possibly be played as a small-ball 4. I just can't see that happening. What are your thoughts on Sarr as a possible 4?
One thing is critical to me as to where this roster stands....did Ty Rodgers improve his jumper to the point of being able to hit 50% of them from 15 ft. and in. It is hard for me to imagine that he took a redshirt year and did not work hard to improve his shooting ability as it was his huge weakness. If he can do that , he is an extremely important retention for this team. Have not heard a word about this but somebody has to know. And just as important, can he hit FTs at a 70%+ clip?
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LadyLoyalty
- Indian Wells, CA
Loyalty + off season = panic
ptgrd23
- orange county CA
Seriously its April 10 2025. Last year only 3 of 7 new players had committed. Nobody every won a B10 championship in off season.
Will Riley committed June 23
KJ commited May 28
Tomas committed May 6
Kylan commited April 14
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Tre committed April 9
Jake committed April 1
Ben committed Mar 28
I agree with your feeling about Sarr possibly not ending up with the Illini. A big problem is that Sarr doesn't have to let us know until much later if he's in or out on the Draft, and whether he will ultimately be attending Illinois or some other college. And the available players left at that time might not be very plentiful or attainable.
This is all well and good, but if this is really what I meant I strongly encourage you to think about your word choice in the future. I've never before seen someone say someone else was "pimping" their child in a positive or neutral way. Strange word choice if that's how you meant it.
Wesley Yates back to Washington. Not sure if he was a target but there’s that.
Are we in on Jamir Watkins at this point, or has the bidding already gotten crazy and we're waiting for the top priority who hasn't entered yet?
Watkins does seem like the very high floor guy who will be 24 years old playing in college next year and would be the SG scorer we need. His shooting %'s all fell last year, but he was also carrying a bad FSU team, so I think he's be even more efficient on a good team. I would think we would spend whatever it takes to get him, but many top schools with a lot of money to spend are likely involved so maybe the price is already in Yaxel territory and it's not feasible.
If the players don't matter then why do you care who plays on your team at all? You should be just as happy with a John Groce roster as with a Brad Underwood roster. So let's maybe just acknowledge that both fans and players matter, otherwise no conversation on this topic will ever get anywhere.
And this goes back to you whole point about you making $5 million not being good for your company. Which is correct. But I can only assume your company would never offer you $5 million. On the other hand, the pay being complained about for players is what they are actually being offered as far as I can tell. If you want a more appropriate analogy, how about this:
You work for a company that makes widgets. You do a really good job at this company, which makes and sells a lot more widgets because of the good work of you and some of your co-workers. As a result, you a promotion and a nice pay bump from $100,000 to $150,000 a year. Way to go!
But, ruh-roh, the demand for your companies widgets has gone up, as has the cost due to these pay bumps, so now the price of widgets goes from $1.50 a piece to $1.75 a piece. The companies buying your widgets to make their wompets are not happy. They are going on message boards and complaining that you IMPE Legend, and some of your other high-performing co-workers, are making way too much money. What's good for IMPE Legend is not good for the customers of wompets, because the companies that use your lowly widgets to make nice and valuable wompets, now have to charge $20.00 a piece instead of $15.00 a piece. And at the end of the day those customers are the people who matter.
I am not disagreeing with your premise, but are there sources for your statement that the money is already drying up? NIL has gone up wildly this year, and the data that I could find seems to indicate that college hoops are making record money. I agree with your overall statement that this situation is not a great one, but outside of a negotiating entity for players to enter into binding contracts, I don't see an easy fix. Actually, I think it will end up being fixed by legislation.
If Ty has any kind of a reliable jumper, that elevates his ceiling immensely.
Did I say I don't care about the players at all? No. But don't let that stop you from making an (incorrect) point.
Your point would be slightly more correct if I was paid not by a company but by those who consumed the product. Then would they be willing to pay me more to keep me from going to another company to produce prodects? Would they donate more and more money each year for someone new to come in each year to produce products they aren't as familiar with? (oh...and also keep paying for the product itself) How about if consumers cared less and less about the product over the years because they don't make the product that they are familiar with...will the consumers who are less interested keep giving money to pay new people's salary each year? if you expect that to happen then your product better make it to the Final Four of products on a pretty regular basis. Cause pretty good, unfamiliar products don't tend to sustain consumer interest.
So I guess my point is that your example is completely irrelevant to the current NIL system in just about every way.
No idea if we're interested or even have a chance. Offensively would be a question mark, but a Boswell, Arceneaux, Sarr, and Rodgers lineup defensively would insane. Houston Midwest.
We can't beat Michigan or St. John's on money, and he's especially wanted to go to Michigan for some time. We have the advantage of having the most open roster for him, if that means anything.
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