Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#576      
illinifan1987
Indy Illini Fan said:
Sounds like Duke is getting more involved with Juke Harris …

Louisville hosting Knox for the role Blackwell would have …

Very interesting …
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Staring The Office GIF
 
#577      
ChiefGritty
altgeld88 said:
reliable insiders here over the years have claimed that he refused to do certain things that previous staff had done, and that fettered him regarding talent acquisition.
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The thing that really drops the curtain for me though is that once Jerrance Howard restarted the talent pipeline, which he was able to do under Weber's leadership, it's not like Bruce's honor and scruples stopped Snacks, the results stayed bad because Bruce's inability to build strong relationships with those players went beyond their commitment date.

He got fired going 6-12 in the Big Ten with top 100 recruits up and down the lineup and three guys who would play in the NBA including a lottery pick that year.

Then it took a mere 12 games after he was gone for those leftovers to reenter the top 10 for the first time since Self's players were here, under John Groce, a coach not even really cut out for this level.

The 2005 season, and really the whole 66-4 run from Jan 31, 2004 to Jan 5, 2006, was a magical alchemy of a coaching philosophy and an inherited team that were dissimilar to each other and a bit initially mismatched just sparking something greater in one another, much more than the sum of its parts.

Bruce Weber isn't a bad basketball coach (neither is John Groce), but you look over the full sweep of his basketball life, and the full 799 games he coached in Division 1, and his mix of strengths and weaknesses are clear, and it's just the sad reality that those weaknesses could only have ever meant failure at the Illinois job which he was a uniquely poor fit for and were a precision-guided missile aimed at the catastrophic total destruction of the near-perfect circumstances the above-mentioned magical alchemy created.

He had an important part to play in creating the magic of 2005, but destroying that magic was a one man show, he really just totally, utterly blew it.

And while us old timers (I guess I can call myself that now) lived out the chaos of that drama in the moment, in retrospect it's crystal clear what the ending was always going to be, he never could have succeeded here.
 
#579      
Oskee
ChiefGritty said:
The thing that really drops the curtain for me though is that once Jerrance Howard restarted the talent pipeline, which he was able to do under Weber's leadership, it's not like Bruce's honor and scruples stopped Snacks, the results stayed bad because Bruce's inability to build strong relationships with those players went beyond their commitment date.

He got fired going 6-12 in the Big Ten with top 100 recruits up and down the lineup and three guys who would play in the NBA including a lottery pick that year.

Then it took a mere 12 games after he was gone for those leftovers to reenter the top 10 for the first time since Self's players were here, under John Groce, a coach not even really cut out for this level.

The 2005 season, and really the whole 66-4 run from Jan 31, 2004 to Jan 5, 2006, was a magical alchemy of a coaching philosophy and an inherited team that were dissimilar to each other and a bit initially mismatched just sparking something greater in one another, much more than the sum of its parts.

Bruce Weber isn't a bad basketball coach (neither is John Groce), but you look over the full sweep of his basketball life, and the full 799 games he coached in Division 1, and his mix of strengths and weaknesses are clear, and it's just the sad reality that those weaknesses could only have ever meant failure at the Illinois job which he was a uniquely poor fit for and were a precision-guided missile aimed at the catastrophic total destruction of the near-perfect circumstances the above-mentioned magical alchemy created.

He had an important part to play in creating the magic of 2005, but destroying that magic was a one man show, he really just totally, utterly blew it.

And while us old timers (I guess I can call myself that now) lived out the chaos of that drama in the moment, in retrospect it's crystal clear what the ending was always going to be, he never could have succeeded here.
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I never realized Bruce finished with 799 games coached. My OCD simply wants SIU (I think SIU would be fitting) to sign him to a one-game contract so that he can finish up at 800.
 
#580      
Sheldon Ram
Bigtex said:
Seen many many posts stating that E8 starter (Rodgers) has earned the opportunity to start in 25-26 Sorry not how it works, playing time is earned. game to game, year to year. Both Jake and Ty would be great teammates and team leaders but don't see either of them being significant contributors.
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Haven’t seen Ty in 2 years I don’t think any of us know how much he will contribute. Reports are that he has improved his shot. One thing I know is he can play defense and rebound like a madman
 
#581      
ptgrd23
I agree that Ty is a bit of a question mark after two years without game action...but

I'd be pretty surprised if Jake doesn't have a significant role. He does pretty much everything right, and provides the spacing needed for our offense to function properly. He is only going to get stronger and smarter, and we know the dude is a legit sniper and competes his tail off for rebounds.
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Jake Davis looked stronger and faster this year. His ability to get the long offense rebounds was very good. He has a high motor and is doing more than shoot 3's. His defense has a ways to go but its not for lack of effort.

I want Ty to be healthy. He will be a role player but can be excellent insurance in case of injury/sickness. I am confident he has improved his offensive game. He as gone thru so much. He deserves a college career either at Illinois or at a mid major. Its up to him.
 
#583      
Fly Illini Fly!
Janssen said:
We need a shutdown defender on the perimeter that can get to the basket, make FT’s and won’t turn the ball over! Am I asking for toooooo much here?
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The truth is, yes you are.

The two clear priorities at the moment are: going after Blackwell AND prioritizing retention of our core rotation players.

One or two of those plans would need to fail in order to entertain any other options (I’m not saying everything goes according to plan; just that things WOULD have to not).

Our plan A scenario will have us ranked very highly preseason — likely 1 or 2 — as it’d be a loaded team.

Also — I think your description fits Andrej perfectly.
 
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#585      
Altgeld's Bells
Duke landing Juke seems like the best possible outcome for Illinois. Guys a superstar…Do NOT want to see him in Ann Arbor
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So if Duke lands Juke, would we have to worry about UM pivoting to try to get in the Blackwell sweepstakes late and outbid us?
 
#586      
madillini4
Janssen said:
We need a shutdown defender on the perimeter that can get to the basket, make FT’s and won’t turn the ball over! Am I asking for toooooo much here?
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Someone could give you a million bucks and you’d be sad it wasn’t 2 million. Things go the way they’re expected to go, and we have a national championship caliber roster.
 
#590      
Deep
Janssen said:
We need a shutdown defender on the perimeter that can get to the basket, make FT’s and won’t turn the ball over! Am I asking for toooooo much here?
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Only one guy I know.....But he did turn the ball over at times.
Michael Jordan Reaction GIF
 
#592      
WhereDoWeStandWithStorr?
PasadenaIllini said:
I would love for us to pick up a player like Rob Wright III from BYU. I feel like we'll regret it if we don't pick up some floor generalship for this team, and I feel like he'd be perfect.
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Stefan Vaaks.
Janssen said:
We need a shutdown defender on the perimeter that can get to the basket, make FT’s and won’t turn the ball over! Am I asking for toooooo much here?
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Andrej Stojakovic.
 
#593      
Warren Carter Fanclub
Who would like to join me in a Class Action against Seth Davis for causing intentional mental distress?

www.hoopshq.com

Seth Davis Updates Never-Too-Early Preseason Top 25

April 12: In light of recent transfer portal news, Seth Davis updates his early Top 25 NCAA rankings for the 2026-27 college hoops season
www.hoopshq.com www.hoopshq.com

2. ILLINOIS​

Last week: 2

Losing: Keaton Wagler, Kylan Boswell, Ben Humrichous, David Mirkovic, Mihailo Petrovic, Toni Bilic

Retaining: Andrej Stojakovic, Tomislav Ivisic, Zvonimir Ivisic, Jake Davis, Mihailo Petrovic, Brandon Lee

Incoming (14): Quentin Coleman (34), Lucas Morillo (59), Ethan Brown (164), Landon Davis (243), Tony Bilic (Croatia), Stefan Vaaks (Providence)

Vaaks’ announcement on Sunday that he is transferring to Illinois strengthens the case for the Illini to be preseason No. 1. I’m not quite there yet, but this is a strong roster. Wagler’s announcement that he is entering the draft came as zero surprise. Mirkovic declared his intent to transfer. He had a chance to improve as a sophomore but was little-used as a freshman. Bilic, who played sparingly during three seasons as a professional in his native Croatia, arrived on campus midseason but did not play in any games. He is also transferring. Illinois is one of six schools in the hunt for Wisconsin’s high-scoring guard John Blackwell, as well as Chinese schoolboy Boyuan Zhang.
 
#595      
altgeld88
ChiefGritty said:
The thing that really drops the curtain for me though is that once Jerrance Howard restarted the talent pipeline, which he was able to do under Weber's leadership, it's not like Bruce's honor and scruples stopped Snacks, the results stayed bad because Bruce's inability to build strong relationships with those players went beyond their commitment date.

He got fired going 6-12 in the Big Ten with top 100 recruits up and down the lineup and three guys who would play in the NBA including a lottery pick that year.

Then it took a mere 12 games after he was gone for those leftovers to reenter the top 10 for the first time since Self's players were here, under John Groce, a coach not even really cut out for this level.

The 2005 season, and really the whole 66-4 run from Jan 31, 2004 to Jan 5, 2006, was a magical alchemy of a coaching philosophy and an inherited team that were dissimilar to each other and a bit initially mismatched just sparking something greater in one another, much more than the sum of its parts.

Bruce Weber isn't a bad basketball coach (neither is John Groce), but you look over the full sweep of his basketball life, and the full 799 games he coached in Division 1, and his mix of strengths and weaknesses are clear, and it's just the sad reality that those weaknesses could only have ever meant failure at the Illinois job which he was a uniquely poor fit for and were a precision-guided missile aimed at the catastrophic total destruction of the near-perfect circumstances the above-mentioned magical alchemy created.

He had an important part to play in creating the magic of 2005, but destroying that magic was a one man show, he really just totally, utterly blew it.

And while us old timers (I guess I can call myself that now) lived out the chaos of that drama in the moment, in retrospect it's crystal clear what the ending was always going to be, he never could have succeeded here.
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I believe I'm an older-timer than you are, and it seemed clear to me by early '07 that something was badly amiss (I've posted about that here within the past 6-9 months I believe.) In '03 I wanted Guenther to hire Thad Matta at Xavier, as I was familiar with him and that program. Was baffled that RG didn't. However, back then I didn't pay any attention to the program off season and so hadn't a clue what that was about.

Seems like a century ago.
 
#599      
IllinistuckinGopherland
I agree that Ty is a bit of a question mark after two years without game action...but

…

I know we all have high hopes for these talented freshmen, but PT is earned through sweat, practice, and gaining the trust of the coaching staff.

Guess which guys have a HUGE head start...
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The real question is: Which player’s mom will become a public distraction as her son gets limited playing time?
 
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