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Illinois Basketball: Illini have serious interest in Taylor Bruninga

By Rees Woodcock

Jan 7, 2017; Waco, TX, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Brad Underwood on the sidelines against the Baylor Bears during the first half at Ferrell Center. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 7, 2017; Waco, TX, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Brad Underwood on the sidelines against the Baylor Bears during the first half at Ferrell Center. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Illinois basketball team now has four scholarships available after two players backed out of their commitment for 2017.

These are crucial scholarships because the Illini need talent to really compete in the Big Ten. What they have right now is fine, but I don’t think those players alone can really make an impact.  While I do think they could still make the NCAA tournament, adding three or four players could really get this team to where it needs to be.

Many players are being wooed right now by Brad Underwood and the Illinois coaching staff. I heard Mark Smith wasn’t out of the question and he has visited with the staff at least once. Corey Evans of Rivals reported that the Illini are doing an in-home visit with Pittsburgh transfer Cam Johnson. And Charlie Moore is now transferring from California and wants to be close to home.

There are so many options out there for Underwood. Hopefully, he can pull in a few of those players to really give a boost to this team. One other player from the class of 2017 that is flying under the radar is Taylor Bruninga.

I had posted an article back in December 2016 about Bruninga being an interesting option for John Groce and his staff, and now that there is a new regime it is time to revisit this talented option.

According to Aaron Ferguson of the Peoria Journal Star, Bruninga has four official visits he has planned or has already been on. He visited Northern Iowa already and will be visiting Illinois State, IPFW and Loyola Chicago as well.

Bruninga is now talking about potentially visiting Illinois on an unofficial visit. His AAU coach, Gavin Sullivan, says that Bruninga is trying to get a visit set for next week with the Illini.

My opinion on this kid is simple. I think Bruninga is going to be really good in a year or two. He is a player that Underwood could redshirt and then unleash in year two as a redshirt freshman.

Bruninga isn’t really on the radar of recruiting sites, but he is a 6-foot-9 player who can do just about anything on the basketball court. He can shoot the three, drive the ball, dish it out and rebound.

There are two comps that I think about when I see Bruninga play basketball. The first is Alec Peters from Valparaiso. He was ranked as a low three-star who had a ton of offers from mid-major programs. He is one of the best players in the college game right now.

The other player I think of when I see his game is Frank Kaminsky. He was a low three-star recruit who was ranked as the No. 218 player in the class of 2011. Not many programs were after him but Wisconsin saw something in him and pounced. He became a great player and was drafted into the NBA.

Next: Top 5 recruiting priorities for Illini

Illinois has four scholarships available and using one on Bruninga wouldn’t be a bad idea. He is one of my top five recruiting priorities for the Illini and someone who could pay off tremendously down the road.

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