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Illinois Basketball: Player expectations for 2017-2018 season

By Rees Woodcock

March 17, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; General view of the court before the game between the Oregon Ducks and the Iona Gaels in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
March 17, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; General view of the court before the game between the Oregon Ducks and the Iona Gaels in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Illinois basketball
Mar 9, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini forward Michael Finke (43) shoots the ball in front of Michigan Wolverines guard Derrick Walton Jr. (10) in the first half during the Big Ten Conference Tournament at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

Michael Finke

Michael Finke was looked to for some important minutes last season. He received an average of 19.8 minutes per game. Illinois needed him because their original starting center, Mike Thorne, wasn’t the same after he recovered from his injuries the year before.

Finke had a pretty good year, actually. He ended up averaging 6.9 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in the time he received. If he would have received as many minutes as Maverick Morgan—who averaged 9.9 points and 4.5 rebounds—Finke would have averaged 8.9 points and 5.4 rebounds. So you could actually make an argument he was the best ‘center’ on the team.

This upcoming season could be roughly the same for Finke. Heading into the 2017-18 campaign, expect him to be the backup to the No. 4 and No. 5 spots, depending on who needs a breather.

Finke has the ability to play the No. 5 spot behind Black and be effective when he is on the court. He can also be stretch No. 4 and really cause chaos with his three-point shooting and on the block matched up against a smaller player.

Look for Finke to average around 19 minutes per game again. Expect his numbers to have a slight uptick, though. He will probably average somewhere in the ballpark of 7.5 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. If the Illini can get that type of production out of him, the future will be bright.

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