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Illinois Basketball: Breakdown of Tim Finke’s top 5 list

By Rees Woodcock

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 11: A basketball hoop, net and backboard are shown before the championship game of the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament between the Arizona Wildcats and the Oregon Ducks at T-Mobile Arena on March 11, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Arizona won 83-80. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 11: A basketball hoop, net and backboard are shown before the championship game of the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament between the Arizona Wildcats and the Oregon Ducks at T-Mobile Arena on March 11, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Arizona won 83-80. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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BUFFALO, NY – MARCH 16: Head coach Mike Brey of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts against the Princeton Tigers during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at KeyBank Center on March 16, 2017 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
BUFFALO, NY – MARCH 16: Head coach Mike Brey of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts against the Princeton Tigers during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at KeyBank Center on March 16, 2017 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Pros

Notre Dame has some of the biggest pros out of the five teams Finke listed. They could be a great destination for this kid if he decides to pick the Fighting Irish.

The first pro for Notre Dame is the fact they will have a solid team around Finke if he heads to South Bend. They already have some talented players on the roster right now like Matt Ryan, but they are also adding some talented guards from the class of 2018 like Robby Carmody and Prentiss Hubb. The team around Finke would help him along in the winning process.

Another pro is that Notre Dame needs more wing players with Finke’s size. They have a few good ones but none of them have proved anything yet. They were all just role players last season. Finke could have a chance to step in and get some playing time right away.

Head coach Mike Brey is another big pro for coming to Notre Dame. He is a great coach who has made the NCAA tournament 9 out of the last 11 years including three in a row. This guy knows how to coach.

Cons

There aren’t many cons for this Notre Dame team. The one I see is also one of the pros. While the team doesn’t have a proven wing of Finke’s size, someone could step up this upcoming season. Notre Dame has three players 6-foot-6 or 6-foot-7 on their team who are only sophomores or freshmen.

Another con would be Notre Dame is over a three-hour drive from Champaign. That is too long and family and friends can’t see him play on weeknights. If he wants to play in front of loved ones he would choose somewhere closer.

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