Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#351      
IlliniFaninHoosierLand
foby said:
I'm downright nucking futs...I think Will will be back.
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#353      
fulton steamer
foby said:
I'm downright nucking futs...I think Will will be back.
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I don't think for one minute that he's coming back. However, it's not absolutely out of the question. If it were, why would Underwood, who is much closer to him than any of us, be hanging on to a "just in case" bag. What's crazy is these definitive statements from we, who know only what we read on this board. The chances of a return, SEEM very, very, very remote; but a remote chance none the less.
 
#354      
ImGonnaBeILL
Mirkovic could very well be good. i personally don't think they'll be allowed to play him and Tomi much together defensively against good/up tempo offenses.

JMO
Play Tomi-Ty together at 4-5
Play Z-Mirk together at 4-5
Give Tomi-Z some limited minutes together.

I think Ty will wind up being the most important piece to this team. Unless they add another significant piece or overhaul their defensive scheme, I'd wager a large sum of money Ty will have to play significant minutes at the 4 this year against good teams.
 
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#356      
ColSLU69
Appleknockersaluki said:
I'm an SIU grad, so I watch about every Saluki game. Dibba had a tendency to disappear for stretches, then take over. One game, from the beginning of the second half, he scored Southern's first like 15 points as they took the lead.

He has long arms and a quick first step, so he can get to the rim and finishes around the rim, often with short jumpers and finesse lay-ups. He almost always goes to his left first although he's right-handed, and teams soon figure that out and overplay him that way, and that seems to stymy him. He doesn't finish strong at the rim and flops hoping for a foul. Then you're left with a five on four fast break situation. He can get hot from the three point line, but he has to be pretty open as he doesn't really elevate for his shot. He got some of his points sneaking into the lane for offensive rebound put-backs. I believe he was SIU's second leading rebounder after Davis.

He's not a strong defender, but gets some steals by lulling you to sleep then snatching balls in the passing lanes with his long arms or stripping the ball out of the opponents hands.

I don't know if playing in shorter bursts would help him focus and be on all the time or if he needs to be in the flow of the game for a while before he could turn it on.

I was surprised how well Lance Jones and Marcus Domask did in the Big 10, so he might be a better addition than I would have thought otherwise.
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Thanks so much for your comments. It's nice to hear from someone who has actually seen Ali Dibba play on multiple occasions, versus someone (like me!) who has only watched his highlight videos.

I felt like Dibba was/is decent to good on catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, but like you I also noticed that he needed some time and space to get those shots off. I didn't see very many 3s off the dribble for Dibba, so they're probably not a major part of his arsenal. (I don't think the Illini would need 3s off the dribble from Dibba, but I do think he might also have more open looks from 3 playing on a loaded team like Illinois. And, if the defender closed out on Dibba, it looks like you and I agree that Dibba could drive by his defender for either a mid-range jumper or a finish at the hoop.)

Do you have any idea how much NIL money SIU paid to Dibba this past season? (Or can you find out?) I ask because there are reports that Illinois is a bit limited on the amount of remaining money available for a potential transfer player. If $200,000 to $300,000 is more than SIU paid him, I think that Illinois would have a chance to add Dibba as a transfer.

The bottom line for me is that I think that the Illini need to add an experienced combo guard/wing with length to its roster for an affordable price. They need a reserve/substitute bench piece, not a star, not even a starter. I just think that Ali Dibba would check a lot of those boxes for the Illini.
 
#357      
ColSLU69
But if it's just shooting that the Illini would need from the late addition of a guard/wing with length, and not necessarily being concerned with defense or ballhandling, it would seem like 6'6" 225-pound Guard Damari Monsanto (UT San Antonio) would be a fine addition to the 25-26 Illinois roster. He averaged 11.1/4.0/1.4 on 40.7/42.0/93.3 shooting this past season for UTSA. I understand that OA has some previous connections with Monsanto. But I don't know how much money Monsanto would require for a transfer commitment to the Illini. Monsanto can hit ALL types of 3s... catch-and shoot, off the dribble, unlimited range, whatever. And his FT shooting is fantastic, which would allow him to play late in close games. It all depends on what Brad would want from this late/last(?) addition to the 25-26 roster.
 
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#358      
ColSLU69
It's interesting that when USC recently signed the transfer wing from Auburn, an earlier transfer to USC, 6'6" 192-pound Sr. Forward Keonte Jones of Cal State Northridge, de-committed from USC. There are rumors that Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, UCLA, and Wisconsin are all pursuing Keon Jones now. I'm wondering if Jones, born in Madison, will end up transferring to Wisconsin. Honestly, I'd rather see him transfer to Arizona or Kansas... and out of the Big Ten.
 
#359      
Aillini32
Is Petrovic for sure eligible for this season? Fedor Zugic for Creighton is younger than him and is likely ineligible after playing only a half season at Creighton.
 
#361      
Fly Illini Fly!
ColSLU69 said:
Thanks so much for your comments. It's nice to hear from someone who has actually seen Ali Dibba play on multiple occasions, versus someone (like me!) who has only watched his highlight videos.

I felt like Dibba was/is decent to good on catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, but like you I also noticed that he needed some time and space to get those shots off. I didn't see very many 3s off the dribble for Dibba, so they're probably not a major part of his arsenal. (I don't think the Illini would need 3s off the dribble from Dibba, but I do think he might also have more open looks from 3 playing on a loaded team like Illinois. And, if the defender closed out on Dibba, it looks like you and I agree that Dibba could drive by his defender for either a mid-range jumper or a finish at the hoop.)

Do you have any idea how much NIL money SIU paid to Dibba this past season? (Or can you find out?) I ask because there are reports that Illinois is a bit limited on the amount of remaining money available for a potential transfer player. If $200,000 to $300,000 is more than SIU paid him, I think that Illinois would have a chance to add Dibba as a transfer.

The bottom line for me is that I think that the Illini need to add an experienced combo guard/wing with length to its roster for an affordable price. They need a reserve/substitute bench piece, not a star, not even a starter. I just think that Ali Dibba would check a lot of those boxes for the Illini.
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ColSLU69 said:
But if it's just shooting that the Illini would need from the late addition of a guard/wing with length, and not necessarily being concerned with defense or ballhandling, it would seem like 6'6" 225-pound Guard Damari Monsanto (UT San Antonio) would be a fine addition to the 25-26 Illinois roster. He averaged 11.1/4.0/1.4 on 40.7/42.0/93.3 shooting this past season for UTSA. I understand that OA has some previous connections with Monsanto. But I don't know how much money Monsanto would require for a transfer commitment to the Illini. Monsanto can hit ALL types of 3s... catch-and shoot, off the dribble, unlimited range, whatever. And his FT shooting is fantastic, which would allow him to play late in close games. It all depends on what Brad would want from this late/last(?) addition to the 25-26 roster.
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ColSLU69 said:
It's interesting that when USC recently signed the transfer wing from Auburn, an earlier transfer to USC, 6'6" 192-pound Sr. Forward Keonte Jones of Cal State Northridge, de-committed from USC. There are rumors that Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, UCLA, and Wisconsin are all pursuing Keon Jones now. I'm wondering if Jones, born in Madison, will end up transferring to Wisconsin. Honestly, I'd rather see him transfer to Arizona or Kansas... and out of the Big Ten.
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#363      
PleaseMakeABowlGame
wouldn't put it as crazy, but rather ignorant. offseason CBB in this day and age is not for everyone; some just don't have the understanding of how such and such things work beyond a very limited extent.
 
#364      
Fly Illini Fly!
Altuve27 said:
Like I said yesterday, the chance is small. He WANTS to go to the NBA. That is VERY clear, but the chance is not 0. You don’t do anything until he makes his final decision. That is why I don’t think you’ll see any activity from Illinois until after the combine. You let that situation play out. With our roster just about done, you can wait on Will.

Also, you can let the combine stuff play out and see if any of the players who return to college BESIDES Will are good fits for that last spot. Just my take on the situation.

Now I’m off to watch Florence Pugh beat up people for 2 hours and 6 glorious minutes.
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And just for the scale of it, '0' is KJ. Unanimously projected as a lotto pick, most likely top 10. No true shot of that, and no path to that happening.

If that's ZERO, then I'd feel fine saying Will Riley (who's mostly projected in that 20-30 range) is at least a 2 or a 3.
 
#373      
Boskydell
IlliniFan42 said:
Ayo was 8 years ago. In 2025 I believe in letting other teams recruit Mac Irvin alumni and then we can get them as transfers if they're worth something.
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Still some Chicago players we want out of highschool; the best being '27 guard Devin Cleveland. Going to have to deal the Fire to get him.
 
#375      
IlliniFan42
Joel Goodson said:
so, Lincoln Williams, a kid who's visited myriad times, is a hard pass now because he's playing AAU for MIF? GMAB
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The guy who's a three-star? On3 projects him most likely to Northern Illinois, with Eastern and Western as next most likely. I want you to think about that for a second and come back with why I should care about a player with that sort of recruitment profile.
 
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