Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#501      
jamarvelous31
Emerson Bigguns said:
I will always believe the Podz story turns out differently if he had been promised playing time at Illinois...

That perceived rejection may well have been the fuel he needed to push himself to become what he is today. Every hero has an origin story, right?

Saying he couldn't have possibly gotten that much better in an off-season doesn't make much sense. It's literally ignoring decades of evidence to the contrary.
Always reminds me of the old Al Maguire quote: "The best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores."

There is also something very freeing to being the #1 option on a team, and not having to look at the bench every time you mess up... Some guys need to be pushed hard, and some guys need to be insulated. If you are the 2nd type, Illinois may not be the place for you.

Promising playing time isn't something Brad is going to do, nor should he.

Some people are simply a bad match for each other, even if they are both great individually.
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I feel like you're breaking up with me..
 
#503      
illini0440
I-L-L 1318 said:
They just rolling with the 3 of them for 4/5 spots? Minutes wise it would be fine, just foul trouble I worry about. I imagine its a tough sell to get anyone decent. "Hey do you wanna come back up the focal point of the offense?"
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thefalcon5 said:
I’m surprised we have no interest in a true backup for Mirk.

I can appreciate/want more Z/Tomi lineups but Ben played 22 a game. And I know the staff loves Davis and we’ve got Jakstys, but man that feels like a decent chunk of pressure on either some small ball lineups or very unproven and seemingly under-talented guys.
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Lucas Morillo is 6 foot 7. He can play 1-4. He will play the 4 next year.
 
#504      
Lincster27
Good luck to Ty. Sucks to see him go, and I would have liked to see him compete for a spot on the roster, but he has to do what's right for him.
 
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#505      
Aillini32
They just rolling with the 3 of them for 4/5 spots? Minutes wise it would be fine, just foul trouble I worry about. I imagine it’s a tough sell to get anyone decent. "Hey do you wanna come back up the focal point of the offense?"
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Could always bring in Aleksa Dimitrijevic who they recruited and recently entered the portal… Developmental piece who could play in a pinch
 
#508      
OB positive
Sure sounds like Blackwell's camp has driven up his asking price past the point with which Brad is comfortable.
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Should have been obvious that was going to happen. Thats why when you are talking to your first choice you should also be talking to others that can fill that role at the same. This mindset of not being willing to pivot has burned us numerous times. When will we learn?
 
#509      
Emerson Bigguns
jamarvelous31 said:
I feel like you're breaking up with me..
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love GIF
 
#511      
Combo
ChiefGritty said:
If you have to spend all the money on #TheRetention, spend all the money on #TheRetention.

And Vaaks will not have come cheap. He's arguably a more valuable asset than Blackwell given the extra years of eligibility.

I like the idea of giving Lee the surplus guard job. It's that fourth big that's a bit of a head-scratcher. Humrichous was really critical for us in terms of making lineups work.
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Doesn't seem to matter much these days.
 
#512      
PeoriaIllini03
ChiefGritty said:
If you have to spend all the money on #TheRetention, spend all the money on #TheRetention.

And Vaaks will not have come cheap. He's arguably a more valuable asset than Blackwell given the extra years of eligibility.

I like the idea of giving Lee the surplus guard job. It's that fourth big that's a bit of a head-scratcher. Humrichous was really critical for us in terms of making lineups work.
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If all goes as planned Vaaks won't be here for more than one year.
 
#517      
SkyysNotFalling
Just to try and clear things up …

I think it’s Andrej …

Or Andrej and Blackwell …

And that’s it …

Staff really doesn’t seem to be showing any interest in anyone else right now …

Brad is not interested in pivoting …
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Timeline on Drej? Is that what the Friday news was going to be?
 
#518      
Leelnd
Illini2010-11 said:
I am not sure why Podz continually gets brought into the equation on these boards. We should congratulate him on what he has been able to accomplish, but when he played at Illinois, he was simply not good enough to get major minutes on a team that won a share of the B1G (which is common for young players out of high school). He decided to play elsewhere to showcase his abilities (with guaranteed starter minutes), and that worked out for him. However, I am tired of seeing it brought up that Brad potentially mishandled the situation. Playing time is earned in practice and the game, not handed to you.
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It's not like Major programs were all over him for a transfer. He went to Santa Clara. Maybe that's what it took for him to adjust or that extra motivation to improve. He looked slow and lost at Illinois.
 
#520      
Heisenbobble
Indy Illini Fan said:
Just to try and clear things up …

I think it’s Andrej …

Or Andrej and Blackwell …

And that’s it …

Staff really doesn’t seem to be showing any interest in anyone else right now …

Brad is not interested in pivoting or settling …
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Personally, I think it's risky since next season seems to be the program's best shot at a natty since '04-05. Not saying they can't win one w/o Blackwell or someone comparable. But it's a huge roll of the dice to trust the freshmen. Vaaks is a good prospect for sure, but he's not Keaton. And I still think they'll need another backcourt veteran like Bam to keep the team locked in.

Maybe Coleman, in fact, told Brad he'll reopen his recruitment again if they land Blackwell or someone else, and Brad is fine with Blackwell replacing Coleman but no one else.
 
#521      
ChiefGritty
PeoriaIllini03 said:
If all goes as planned Vaaks won't be here for more than one year.
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Which speaks to how good he is.

Combo said:
Doesn't seem to matter much these days.
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We seem to be moving away from "new team every year", which served us well, but wasn't sustainable.

illini0440 said:
Lucas Morillo is 6 foot 7. He can play 1-4. He will play the 4 next year.
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Somebody scoffed at me when I compared him to Hansberry. A scoff back at whoever that was!

Emerson Bigguns said:
I will always believe the Podz story turns out differently if he had been promised playing time at Illinois...

That perceived rejection may well have been the fuel he needed to push himself to become what he is today. Every hero has an origin story, right?

Saying he couldn't have possibly gotten that much better in an off-season doesn't make much sense. It's literally ignoring decades of evidence to the contrary.
Always reminds me of the old Al Maguire quote: "The best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores."

There is also something very freeing to being the #1 option on a team, and not having to look at the bench every time you mess up... Some guys need to be pushed hard, and some guys need to be insulated. If you are the 2nd type, Illinois may not be the place for you.

Promising playing time isn't something Brad is going to do, nor should he.

Some people are simply a bad match for each other, even if they are both great individually.
Click to expand...
The irony with Podz is that he's a pretty similar player to Jakucionis, who is a fairly similar player to Vaaks.

Those guys are nothing like Andres Feliz, but there's a different philosophy now.
 
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#523      
whatahack
Just to try and clear things up …

I think it’s Andrej …

Or Andrej and Blackwell …

And that’s it …

Staff really doesn’t seem to be showing any interest in anyone else right now …

Brad is not interested in pivoting or settling …
Click to expand...
Do you think we'll know by Monday...
 
#525      
Illinisnake
I’m good with just Andrej with the freshmen we have coming in. If we get Blackwell and Andrej, great. But if we don’t, I’m okay, still a top 5 team with the ability to spread minutes. Coleman and Morillo are going to be studs.
 
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