Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#626      
BryceHopkins
HillJackBob said:
There are more than a few people in this thread who don't seem to be sold on Vaaks.

A real bunch of anti-Vaaksers, they are.
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Proud The Karate Kid GIF
 
#627      
SescIllini
the juiceman cometh said:
That guy is the single most unpredictable prospect I've ever heard of. He was at a couple big time prep schools in the US and decided to go play pro ball in Serbia. I think he thought he'd play a year over there and then get drafted. Didn't work out. He barely played because the coach said he didn't understand the tactics of team basketball. In February he left that team to come back to the US. Who knows what he does next. Seems like a major head case. Obviously super talented but don't think I'd want that in our locker room.
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Heard some talk of his "fit" into Illini, seems we backed away from him.
 
#629      
SescIllini
and 69 others said:
I'm not saying this won't happen, but generally the 3-point percentages of guys coming from other programs have not gone up at Illinois besides Jake. Ben, KB, AS, and Z are all down from their previous stops. I don't know if there's a reason, but now I'll wait for AirTran to tell me how evil I am for pointing this out.
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Vaaks will see a much greater step up in competition. Agree, the transfer players for the most part has seen 3pt% make gone down. Not sure why, great looks and plenty of practice.
 
#631      
WhereDoWeStandWithStorr?
PleaseMakeABowlGame said:
So:

We scored 1.249 points per possession. We had 65.7 possessions per 40 minutes.

So, we scored 82.0593 points per 40 minutes.

We played 37 games this season.

82.0593 * 37 = about 3,036.194 points scored total IF each game were 40 minutes.

But, each game was not 40 minutes. We played 4 overtime games this year (MSU, UCLA, Wisconsin, Wisconsin) which means we played:

(40 * 37) + 20 =1,500 played minutes on the season.

IF each game were 40 minutes, we would have played 1480 minutes.

So:

(3,036.194 / 1480) * 1500 = 3077.2236 (rounded to 4 decimal places)

3077.2236 / 37 =

View attachment 49591

On the season, Illinois is listed to have scored this many points per game:

View attachment 49592

So there’s the super complicated method of finding out points per game.

Yes, you could obviously use total points scored divided by total games played for a significantly simpler calculation - and by definition, a more correct result (or the same result).

However, this was me just trying to prove that pace and ppp are the actual data that matters.
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Lol

Suspicious Thinking GIF by Bobo Memes
 
#635      
SkyysNotFalling
If Ty leaves is DJ Wagner too much of an ask for a replacement? I’m sure he wouldn’t want to come here for 10ish minutes off the bench.
 
#636      
bavanga3
It would truly be a seismic shift to their psyche if they were to lose a high priority recruit to Illinois. Might not be a full blown panic but there would be that nagging fear that the foundation isn’t sturdy as in eras past.
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You're sipping too much orange and blue koolaid. Duke has the #1 recruiting class coming in. You act like they haven't lost recruiting battles every year. No Duke fan would care and they'd quickly move on to the next.
 
#637      
bavanga3
I like everything about him. Sure it’s a highlight reel and “bullsh*t” program BUT…

If he can excel in that system, (or lack there of) making off-balance shot after off balance shot…and being savvy enough to finish at the rack; plus the court vision. Wow, would all that translate here!
Really enthused about him.
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That was Georgetown, not Providence.
 
#638      
WolfpackIllini
Heard some talk of his "fit" into Illini, seems we backed away from him.
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Look, this kid maarkanen (sp?) played in Serbia and didnt fit in. Is this not expected, without a -vic in his name?
 
#639      
bavanga3
#641      
AirTran
SescIllini said:
Heard some talk of his "fit" into Illini, seems we backed away from him.
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Where did you hear this from? The reason I ask is that the reports I get from AI search of all written content changed overnight - in the opposite direction:


Yes, as of April 11-12, 2026, the University of Illinois basketball team is actively pursuing Providence transfer guard Stefan Vaaks.
Here are the details of the recruitment as of April 12, 2026:
  • Active Interest: Illinois is heavily involved and considered a top contender for the 6-foot-7 freshman from Estonia.
  • Trending Well: Reports as of April 11 suggest the situation is "trending well for Illinois," with a decision expected soon.
  • Competition: The main competition for Vaaks is believed to be North Carolina.
The other player I keep reading about is Terrence Hill Jr. (VCU): Illinois has been linked to this breakout guard who averaged 15 points per game and shot 37% from three-point range

BTW has anyone here seen what Quentin Coleman looks like? He weighs 190 lbs and he scored 50pts in the Missouri D3 state championship game (understanding that is not the highest level of basketball competition). So he is not coming in needing to build up his body as much as Keaton did.
 
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#642      
zoiks
EmeraldCityIllini said:
Personally, I’m a bit surprised by the Vaaks + Blackwell idea. I’d go for a different pairing.

But I’m not on the staff whose putting together historic offenses here recently.
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We better get Andre back so we have a player that can guard quick opponents, or the defense could be very ugly with that starting guard combo.
 
#643      
EmeraldCityIllini
HillJackBob said:
There are more than a few people in this thread who don't seem to be sold on Vaaks.

A real bunch of anti-Vaaksers, they are.
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I’m torn on him. On one hand, the size and skill as a point guard is perfect for us, and in our system could unlock a whole other level.

On the other, I’m terrified of the onball defense. And IF Blackwell was here, I’d be not concerned about the offense at all.

The answer is probably “ya man. He’s awesome. And you take awesome players.” Ha
 
#644      
Altuve27
Second place is 1st loser said:
I would really, really be cautious in thinking this is anywhere near a lock. You've been around long enough to know that things can and more often do go sideways. When talking about money, it's amazing how programs come up with additional out of nowhere.
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When Duke is involved the term lock doesn’t even enter my thinking. To that end, I have been looking at various guys who I feel would be excellent fits should John head to Durham.

I alluded to this yesterday. It is EXTREMELY unlikely everything falls into place for us. That’s just reality.

The first thing I want to see is a post announcing we have retained a bunch of our players. Go from there. As Trotter talked about, retaining Mirk would be equivalent to getting a top 3 guy in the portal. Getting Tomi back would, conservatively, be like getting a top 8-10 guy in the portal. Andrej would like top 10-15. Z would be VERY sought after if he portalled.

We have some big time talent. Need to keep those guys and build from there.
 
#646      
CoalCity
SkyysNotFalling said:
Assuming Vaaks will be our lead guard. If we keep him in the Keaton role, he has the ability to be an All-American. Then getting a certified bucket in Blackwell as the Kylan replacement… that’s just impossible to stop. I hate to say it, but Kylan was the one that didn’t fit with last years team. He became sort of a black hole offensively due to poor finishing at the rim and the inability to hit those floaters and middies. Remember he got one early in the UConn game and it looked so flat- feel like he hadn’t hit one of those in months… he shot 1-13 in the sweet 16 & beyond in the tournament. Assuming Drej is the starter at the 3 day 1.. how do you guard that? I think all of our presumed starters are All-Big Ten level player… I mean jeez. QC, Jake, Z & maybe a 9th guy who’s TBD or Morillo… that’s probably a national title favorite.
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I think Morillo is gonna be higher than 9th in the pecking order.
 
#649      
FinallyMadeAnAccount
Blackwell (6’4”), Senior
Vaaks (6’7”), Sophomore
Stojakovic (6’7”), Senior
Mirkovic (6’9”), Sophomore
Tomislav (7’1”), Senior

Coleman (6’4”), Freshman
Davis (6’6”), Senior
Rodgers (6’6”), Redshirt Junior
Morillo (6’7”), Freshman
Zvonimir (7’2”), Senior

That's 2 freshmen, 2 sophomores, 1 junior, and 5 seniors with Rodgers basically being a senior. That's a ton of size and experience.
 
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