Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

[FightinIllini30]

WE DO NOT NEED THE THREE FRESHMAN TO BE PERFECT OR GREAT. ITS NOT CRAZY TO ASK TOP 50 RECRUITS TO BE THE FIFTH AND EIGHT OPTIONS ON A REALLY GOOD TEAM.

I mean we appreciate the inside info I don’t want you guys to ever feel like it’s you guys against us.

But also… relax man haha. Most people on this board agree with you and you’re just going to take years off of your life worrying about people who think this team will be anything short of incredible

 

[Scoregasm]

WE DO NOT NEED THE THREE FRESHMAN TO BE PERFECT OR GREAT. ITS NOT CRAZY TO ASK TOP 50 RECRUITS TO BE THE FIFTH AND EIGHT OPTIONS ON A REALLY GOOD TEAM.

 

[Kramerica Industries]

Never said that.

In an earlier post, I described gaps we had in last year’s team:
- Perimeter defense
- Low post offense

These things allow for us to better weather cold 3 point shooting nights like what plagued us vs. UConn.

The shots that rimmed out were not some easy lay-ins. Whether that be Kylan, Andrej, or Mirk. If they were so easy why not dunk them instead of bringing the rim into question? There’s an athleticism gap here. Roddy Gayle, Burnett, and McKenney were 3 guards on Michigan that could dunk. And that’s before we even talk about the athleticism of their frontcourt with Yaxel and Morez.

Was it ideal for Keaton to go 2-10 from 3 launching 30ft’ers? Why didn’t we continue working the ball in and drawing fouls the way Michigan did? Cadeau shot the most free throws in the final.

We made the Final Four. No one is denying that achievement. We played 1 team seeded higher than 9 en route. Beating Houston in Houston extinguished a lot of the demons from the 2022 loss.

But we’ve now lost three straight times to UConn. One blowout. One comfortable win. And one that was within 2 possessions but never closer the entire second half. How much did Tarris Reed Jr hurt us with dunks and low post finishes? Have we addressed that gap?

 

[Orangeandblue72]

Remember when the team stood around and waited for Ayo to make the play? It was so frustrating. He would pass the ball and they would all pass it back to him and stand around the 3 point parameter.

I remember them doing that with Wagler.

 

[Illiniam1984]

I’m done explaining why we don’t need another elite guard on the team….Ya’ll figure it out.

 

[sacraig]

WHO ARE YOU GOING TO GO GET!?

Jalen Brunson

 

[Chase321]

What was embarrassing? He made a statement of fact. Some pretend that because the team made a great run to the F4 that the flaws we saw late in the year are gone or will be fixed by another year of development.

And I’ll add again that I’m really excited about next season. I think this team will ride the wave of the F4 run and retention to a top 5 preseason ranking. We’ll be contenders probably. I’m thrilled with the retention. I’m certainly not “miserable.” But I also sure hope we use at least one more of our remaining slots on a player who can be in the rotation.

 

[Det_Illini_fan]

I know BU and staff tried to get Blackwell. I give credit for going for it.

I am assuming this is a Top 5 team as put together right now? You agree?

If Coleman and Morillo do well (which, I think they can), then the team is even stronger.

Question for me is: did other schools get that much better for next year as well? Maybe Florida?

I am hoping the Illini can stay with these teams in the Top Ten like this past year.

I think we’re more safely Top 10 than Top 5 as put together, but after summer and Non-Con we could look closer to Top 5 if things progress on the right track. Everything else I agree with.

 

[Illini1985]

Lots of yelling... but can we get Ty back or has that ship sailed? Can't we just pay him a bit more than market value to keep him happy and willing to accept a spot role?

I just don't trust our ability to defend with this roster and Ty would go along way to ease that worry.

 

[Tevo]

Good point. We sort of assume all our returning players will get better. But that's not always the case.

Since nobody EVER knows how good anyone will be in the upcoming season, every team makes assumptions, projected from what they know about the players and what they know about their plans for those players, and how they expect them to develop. Any transfer or new addition (whether they were a star last year or a role player) could regress, or not fit in, or worst become a locker room cancer or distraction. As a coach or program leader, if you don't see options that you believe clearly make your team better, then it's probably better to hold with what you have. There might also be uses for funds later in the summer. You could even argue that spending every possible dime for players that don't turn out great could hurt your chances for those donors' support next season.

 

[LadyLoyalty]

Ugh, These takes. Flashback to last May when all the doomers, who think they know everything said our season would be awful, we wouldn’t finish in the top half of the Big Ten, outwardly hostile to Ben, none of the incoming freshmen would play minutes, and BU reached his ceiling. Seriously, stfu and be grateful. This staff is amazing and they always have a plan.

 

[sacraig]

delete

I assume this is intended to apply to the whole thread.

 

[EmeraldCityIllini]

Do you know with certainty that the staff thinks they have enough? Or are they also concerned and looking for an answer? None of us know what they think.

No idea what the staff thinks. only said "if the staff thinks that" then I trust it.

 

[Krombopulos_Michael]

Been on this board long enough to know how it goes

 

[dank1982]

Question for one of the "insiders". Why would the staff not want to recruit to be the team to beat instead of just another contender?

Who do you think they should have gotten that they didn't? Literally every year we hear about how Brad cant keep recruits...what's he doing? Keeps everyone here that was part of the run. You guys then say he didnt do enough. I guess I'm just confused about what this guy needs to do. Also where would Andrej rank if he portaled? Mirk? Tomi? Big Z? Let's say none of them played for Illinois last year and he brought all them in this year...what would you guys think then?

 

[illini0440]

Jalen Brunson

 

[sacraig]

At this point, I've largely lost the will to argue on here and instead resort to snark to make a point more efficiently.

 

[My2Cents]

A shrink and pharmacist could make a kill'n here.

 

[dank1982]

At this point, I've largely lost the will to argue on here and instead resort to snark to make a point more efficiently.

Its how I feel when talking to flat Earthers

 

[grue2]

Some of you are beyond miserable, goodness.

What do you expect. Its almost 7 months before the next game. Of course I'm miserable.

 

[mysterio2525]

legally I'm still in portal Kombat chaos mode and at this price point I'm allowed to make wild and crazy claims and be an emotional wreck.

next phase: may and June I chill and let it all pass knowing it will be fine. new news is slow so no need to get all worked up

July: I assess the final roster and start dreaming for the next year

but in honor if 4/20. I'll chill until tomorrow

 

[foby]

At this point, I've largely lost the will to argue on here and instead resort to snark to make a point more efficiently.

 

[Chillinini]

Hope Coleman can transition from a small private school in St. Louis County, MO to the BIG. The change in completion will be a huge change for him. Being Wagler 2.0 would be like finding 2 needles in 2 haystacks or discovering 2 matching snowflakes. Sure hope he is IT. Wagler has certainly spoiled us.

Look at their schedule. They played a lot of teams nationally. Strong tournaments and teams.

 

[sacraig]

Levelheaded Illini fan: Brad got us to a Final Four. Surely the critics will pipe down for a bit, now.


IllinoisLoyalty:

 

[Dragons89]

Tournament Andrej doesn't happen if he's handed a starting role and doesn't improve his D & rebounding.

Davis earned that starting role and I would be shocked if he doesn't continue to put in the work. I'd rather make Coleman take it from him.

If AS wasn’t hurt, twice for that matter, Jake wasn’t taking anything from him. Get real, Jake is a role player, spark off the bench type and doesn’t handle pressure at all. The ball was a hot potato in his hands in the BTT AND NCAA tournament. I like Jake and he has a role but don’t get carried away.