Just a few days ago Illinois basketball fans thought the four amazing recruits for the class of 2017 were going to stick together.
Today the fanbase found out a different story. Despite a retweet of a tweet Tilmon posted months ago, he has now posted on social media that he will be getting a release from the National Letter of Intent that he signed back in November.
Up until the point where Tilmon decided to get a release, Illini Nation was actually having good feelings. It had been a while since we had things go our way for once. A new head coach was hired and all four players were thought to be staying with their pledge.
But, a little bit of that good feeling ended today with Tilmon opting out of his NLI. This means Illinois will be looking for a replacement at the center position.
Tilmon is a five-star center who was the No. 18 recruit in the class of 2017. He was the centerpiece of a recruiting class that Champaign hasn’t seen since the 2002 group that featured Dee Brown and Deron Williams. These were supposed to be special times for this fanbase who has gone through a lot of stuff over the last decade.
You know what, though, for some reason I still think Illinois basketball will be fine. This is a strong program with strong leadership and I think everything will be okay. We lost our best player in the class of 2017, so what?
Illinois still has a great point guard in Trent Frazier coming in that will be a great one-two punch with Te’Jon Lucas. They are a combination of point guards much like Williams and Brown in 2005.
Da’Monte Williams is also waiting in the wings. He might redshirt year one but we all know he has orange and blue blood and he is going to be a really good player like his dad.
I haven’t even mentioned Javon Pickett yet either. He is a long No. 3 who can put the ball on the floor and get to the hoop. His play on the court is electric and I can’t wait to see how he does at the college level.
The mindset for Brad Underwood and the Illini now is to find a center for 2017. That is mission number one and I think it can happen. There were a few recruits who were let out of their NLI this month and there are some graduate transfers as well.
Next: Top 5 recruiting targets for Brad Underwood
Illinois lost a big piece in the championship puzzle today, but that doesn’t mean hope is lost. They still have talent on the roster and more great talent coming in. This team will rise and We Will Win.