Nice to see Kasparas in the picture. I guess Thomasilav will not arrive until next week?
Illini Basketball 2024-2025
DB11Headband
- Chicago Burbs
Possibly. Either way no concern.
Purdue may not have our raw talent, but they have a lot of veteran players who have multiple years of experience playing together, including on the big stage of the Final Four. I think Purdue have to be considered as favorites over us until we prove otherwise. Hopefully the underdog role will motivate our guys.
It doesn't suck AS badly, but still atrocious! Easily the ugliest floor in the B1G, if not the nation.....
OR...they, including us who follow the team closely, haven't seen 80% of our roster play in a live game at the college level, on a team with expectations to win.
While I agree that journalism is lazy, our inflating of our roster before seeing any of it is just as awkward of a take.
This isn't a plug and play roster. A whole lot needs to be ironed out.
Jake Davis…. I think we are getting a real deal and winner.
Coach Underwood said this week that the Illinois coaching staff underestimated Jake’s basketball abilities but they knew that he had a great shot. He is one of the players who impressed Coach
during the scrimmage schedule.
Coach talked about the hard work of all the players and he said Davis has lost weight…no doubt to speed up.
I did some reading on Jake from his high school coach Jason Delaney and he had glowing comments. “He’s a loyal kid and he does the intangible things. Makes the extra pass instead of forcing up a shot. ... They’re getting the highest quality of person they can get. He’s the ultimate teammate. He’ll always put the team first and do the little things and focus on the details because he wants to win.”
He’s going to shoot the ball at a high rate,” Delaney said. “He doesn’t take bad shots. That’s why he shoots such a good percentage. He’s going to take good shots.”
From an IQ standpoint, he’s going to make his teammates better around him. He’s going to be in the gym, and he’s going to pull guys in there with him.
“Jake, two years ago, helped us to a state title,” Delaney said. “He’s just bringing that championship culture to Illinois. He’s going to make guys around him better because that’s what he does.”
“Even after he was done playing his senior year, we do 6 a.m. spring workouts, and he was at every one because, for him, it was important that he had the guys playing this year ready to go. He didn’t want a drop off in our program.”
Coach Underwood said this week that the Illinois coaching staff underestimated Jake’s basketball abilities but they knew that he had a great shot. He is one of the players who impressed Coach
during the scrimmage schedule.
Coach talked about the hard work of all the players and he said Davis has lost weight…no doubt to speed up.
I did some reading on Jake from his high school coach Jason Delaney and he had glowing comments. “He’s a loyal kid and he does the intangible things. Makes the extra pass instead of forcing up a shot. ... They’re getting the highest quality of person they can get. He’s the ultimate teammate. He’ll always put the team first and do the little things and focus on the details because he wants to win.”
He’s going to shoot the ball at a high rate,” Delaney said. “He doesn’t take bad shots. That’s why he shoots such a good percentage. He’s going to take good shots.”
From an IQ standpoint, he’s going to make his teammates better around him. He’s going to be in the gym, and he’s going to pull guys in there with him.
“Jake, two years ago, helped us to a state title,” Delaney said. “He’s just bringing that championship culture to Illinois. He’s going to make guys around him better because that’s what he does.”
“Even after he was done playing his senior year, we do 6 a.m. spring workouts, and he was at every one because, for him, it was important that he had the guys playing this year ready to go. He didn’t want a drop off in our program.”
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If he can work his way into the competitive mix for playing time it'll only make practices more intense and our team that much better. Love it.
Joel Goodson
- dawgville
another 8 parter (guy's consistent):
I have no insight at all into how Booth is actually feeling about it all, but as I see it as an outsider, I would think Booth's future outlook is quite a bit better than almost anyone else on the team that's not an expected/potential starter this year. And of course I'm sure he wants minutes and would love to start, but we were in on Humrichous pretty early on in the portal season, so I'd think Booth would have been given an honest view of how that might go for him this year.
But at least Humrichous is out of eligibility next year, and right now we don't really have another player that is all that close to Booth in terms of his unique niche and role as a stretch 4.
Ty will presumably be competing again with Tre White next year for wing minutes if they both are still around, and that's assuming that Will Riley turns out to be a one and done.
Our backcourt seems like it will be absolutely loaded again, especially if KJ comes back for year 2. (and if we somehow also land Jasper Johnson??!??). That will be a bloodbath in practice. Honestly don't see how we keep everyone there - something's gotta give (most likely we don't get Johnson).
Morez and Ivisic are both freshmen at the 5 spot. (Also presumably JasonJ is in the mix here I guess? We'll see how he develops)
Conclusion: Out of our current roster, Booth has the clearest path/least direct competition to earning a starting role as an upperclassman if he can impress the staff and if he sticks around. (Oh and Booth could conceivably even develop enough perimeter game and prove himself as a perimeter defender to play a wing role, too)
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You're wanting Booth to assume that next year he won't have another portal transfer to compete against.
The hope obviously is that we've recruited the EDGs that will respond to being on the bench by working harder.
Looks like I was running to my toilet to spew on Unofficial but didn’t make it and puked on some poor wood table
Whatever happened to just having a basketball court? We gotta put a mural on the floor now? #oldmanyellingatcloud
It’s not only nice to have our esteemed Athletic Director to be a highly intelligent and have a legally educated mind, but to have one who bleeds orange…hmmm. we couldn’t ask for more.
www.wqad.com
The rest of the country is now seeing what Illinois men's basketball fans have all along
March 2017 saw a pivotal change in Illinois basketball when Brad Underwood was hired as the program's 18th head coach.
www.wqad.com
To be fair, it is better than their old mural.
Agreed......Every Day Guy.....or is this still a thing?
Every fan base inflates/overrates their roster.
And I agree it's not plug and play. There will be lots of growing pains and they may last most or all of the season.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I'd agree in theory, but the roster turnover is so crazy and so widespread every offseason (and includes TRULY high-talent guys, not just those buried on the bench the previous season) that I think journalists and other people who make these lists shouldn't penalize a talented team just because it's a bit of a "mystery." While our level of replacing/reloading is certainly above average this year, the days of returning our 2005 squad after our 2004 season are obviously pretty much gone, too. We are at a point where we pretty much have to judge teams based on their assumed talent level, and ours is pretty good.
I would also argue that Underwood should have earned a LOT more benefit of the doubt from national pundits than he has. Sure, they sing his praises for what he's accomplished to-date, but we entered the season pretty damn underrated last year, and we have been in the top third of the Big Ten pretty much every year for 5 years now. I think whatever uncertainty there is by our roster playing together is pretty much counterbalanced by (A) a lot of teams at least having SOME degree of the same dynamic and (B) Underwood proving before that he can at least in theory make this work.
Very true. But there is a lot of film out there, and these guys are high-3/4/5 star players. If they were headed to a blue blood they would be touted by the national guys WAY more than they are heading to Illinois. Same ol song and dance from the media.
No obviously he can’t assume that. That’s something he might have to deal with - honestly it’s likely just for the sake of depth.
But unlike other positions, Booth would at least already have a year of experience and a head start in building trust with Brad and the staff, compared to a new transfer or recruit. I think that’s clearly worth a fair bit. I doubt any player ever expects to have literally no competition for their spot - especially in good programs. But Booth is in a position to have no real entrenched competition, and nobody else on the team is really in that same position as far as I can see.
Just trying to show what some of the most well known ranking sites have him at. Maybe quit trying to make everything seem like such a problem...? Even the simplest of things...?
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Is it unreasonable to think BU could utilize a hockey shift? Would that not be the best way to approach the season with arguably the best depth in the league? Maximum effort for short durations...
Team 1: Boswell, Riley, White, Booth, Ivisic
Team 2: Kasparas, DGL, Humrichous, Rodgers, Morez
Understand that my ideal starting group isn't just team 1. I would want an even distribution of skill on both teams for continuity.
BTW, not that high on Jake Davis. Maybe I'll be surprised but I don't see him getting on the court.
Team 1: Boswell, Riley, White, Booth, Ivisic
Team 2: Kasparas, DGL, Humrichous, Rodgers, Morez
Understand that my ideal starting group isn't just team 1. I would want an even distribution of skill on both teams for continuity.
BTW, not that high on Jake Davis. Maybe I'll be surprised but I don't see him getting on the court.