Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread
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Two guys they like long term. Will take two more incoming freshman, both of which will be top 100 kids.
I don't mean to be rude or tear anyone down but watching his highlights and this doesn't even seem like a kid that Bradley would take.....what are we doing?
Ok good. Because that was my first thought..I’ll give the boom …
But I don’t agree with taking the kid … At all …
What’s going on in the head of Brad with current recruiting? It’s becoming concerning and starting to look like Bruce Weber / Groce recruits.
Is it get 13-15 end of the bench players? Because these are MVC type players right now. Orlando… what have you been up to?
Why is he even on staff still.
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mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
It's an interesting zag. Staff sees an issue with keeping talent, so you bring in projects that could help down the road but are very unlikely to be convinced to leave Illinois for another high-major program.
This zag believes the issue is talent, not retention. I view it as the opposite. Bring in the best players you can and learn to excel at retention. Getting pieces that others do not want is a signal, not noise.
This zag believes the issue is talent, not retention. I view it as the opposite. Bring in the best players you can and learn to excel at retention. Getting pieces that others do not want is a signal, not noise.
I mean, yeah... all the big programs are bringing in 0-3 star guys for end of bench / roster filler...
NIL isn't really disclosed, but if that's the only gripe - can't imagine he's getting much of anything
I guess the one thing that can be said in defense of this is, take a look at Braden Smith's offer sheet. Purdue, and then...Appalachian State, Montana, and Toledo.
So I don't necessarily love this but I suppose the argument in favor is there are 15 spots to fill, probably only 10 guys that actually play in any meaningful way, and highly ranked recruits that don't play will transfer at their first opportunity. So it makes sense to have at least 2-3 and up to 5 lower ranked/lottery ticket type guys you think you can develop into something, who at a minimum help somewhat with continuity and culture (in practice and the locker room).
I think that's the case in favor, and I get it. But why not wait and see how you do with your Plan A and Plan B guys first?
So I don't necessarily love this but I suppose the argument in favor is there are 15 spots to fill, probably only 10 guys that actually play in any meaningful way, and highly ranked recruits that don't play will transfer at their first opportunity. So it makes sense to have at least 2-3 and up to 5 lower ranked/lottery ticket type guys you think you can develop into something, who at a minimum help somewhat with continuity and culture (in practice and the locker room).
I think that's the case in favor, and I get it. But why not wait and see how you do with your Plan A and Plan B guys first?
What are we doing here? Why are we hell bent on turning into Iowa?
So kinda like the Weber/Groce years? 2-4 top 100 kids and a horde of 3 stars?
RabidDawgClassic
- Los Angeles, CA
You all fret way too much.
Given that we now have 15 scholarships and at best you play 10 of those during the season, you have to fill the end of roster with cost-effective players who have the potential to develop but at worst are good practice players. We’re no longer filling spots 14 and 15 with walkons who don’t get a scholarship. You can now pick and choose from players who are slightly above walkon caliber who have the potential to become more. You’re not limited to guys who just happen to be students at the university.
No doubt Brad will continues to fill spots 1-10 with the Ivisics, Boswells and Stojakavics of the world. Spots 11-13 will go to freshmen like Lee and Wagler who have real potential to be more or players like Jakstys who might redshirt to develop.
Given that we now have 15 scholarships and at best you play 10 of those during the season, you have to fill the end of roster with cost-effective players who have the potential to develop but at worst are good practice players. We’re no longer filling spots 14 and 15 with walkons who don’t get a scholarship. You can now pick and choose from players who are slightly above walkon caliber who have the potential to become more. You’re not limited to guys who just happen to be students at the university.
No doubt Brad will continues to fill spots 1-10 with the Ivisics, Boswells and Stojakavics of the world. Spots 11-13 will go to freshmen like Lee and Wagler who have real potential to be more or players like Jakstys who might redshirt to develop.
3 star? Josh Dix was a 3 star coming out of HS. Ya never know for sure where a kid can be a few years later.
217sports
- Springfield
Yep, our main recruiting will still be done in the Spring. What has Brad done in the past that makes you think he is only taking these two players? Euros and atleast one t25 2026 guy are all still in the plan.
Keep the money at the top of the roster.
I think the idea is that you allocate basically your entire budget to your top 8. You have to fill out the bottom 7 so why not get some guys that buy into the program and could potentially develop into something even if it's just a really cheap 10th man?
Brad clearly likes experienced guys more than freshman and Illinois doesn't have the budget to go spend on a ton of highly ranked freshman while also retaining guys and grabbing veteran portal additions.
I said this last year but you can take a redshirt program/developmental guy like Jakstys every year and just fill out roster spots 11-15 with them. There is a chance that lower ranked guys develop into quality players like Coleman Hawkins did but even if those guys are just depth they still help give you continuity and create a culture.
I don't really know anything about Davis outside of watching a few clips and he looks like an undersized mid major big but you never know. Tyler Bilodeau was ranked 220 by 247 composite(3 star and only power conference offer was Oregon State vs Davis being ranked 226) and just had an all big 10 season and absolutely killed us in the UCLA game. That's probably a 100th percentile outcome for Davis but who knows we are only a year away from an elite 8 team where our 2nd best player was an undersized forward from Wisconsin that was ranked 481 nationally.
It's August, just relax and enjoy football season(both Illinois and the Bears look promising this year).
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It is a bit weird that Brad’s nudes weren’t released after demoting him
rmlsr
- El Paso,IL
I agree I don’t understand what is doing
It is crystal clear that BU wants to use his end of bench scholarships on kids with size that can actually make threes at a high clip and not flashy kids with handles that win dunk contests while shooting 22% from the arc and 43 % from the line. For those who actually pay attention to the evolution of the game, this makes total sense. He has two kids in the fold who can already make threes at around 40%. Now they have to learn to defend and bang with B1G bodies.
It’s going to be the norm now. BU will keep Illini competitive in the BIG10 and a top 30 team and try and ride that Elite 8 team as long as he can without ever getting there again most likely.
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