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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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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – MARCH 17: Head coach Brad Underwood of the Oklahoma State Cowboys argues a call against the Michigan Wolverines during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 17, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – MARCH 17: Head coach Brad Underwood of the Oklahoma State Cowboys argues a call against the Michigan Wolverines during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 17, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Illinois Fighting Illini

Pros

Illinois has the most pros among the five teams Finke mentioned as his leaders. The first pro for the Illini is playing time. They are extremely guard heavy right now with only Kipper Nichols playing the role that Finke would play.

Nichols is going to be a good player but there will be plenty of playing time available for Finke if he picked the Illini.

Another pro would be the Illini’s talent. While they do need some more depth at forward, they still have a nice stable of guards who should help carry this team to many winning seasons ahead. This team will be good and they will win.

Finke also has a chance to play in a fast-paced, shoot quick, type of offense that is conducive to putting up numbers. Not only will this be a fun system to play in, but NBA scouts would surely love to see Finke putting up big numbers as well.

Finally, Finke would be able to play in front of friends and family every home game. To win for the hometown Illini would be a huge for his legacy in the state of Illinois.

Next: Illinois basketball players who have the most NBA talent

Cons

There aren’t a lot of cons for this Illini program. The one con that really sticks out is the coaching change. Much like Ohio State, Illinois went through a coaching change when John Groce was fired and Underwood was hired.

Groce had been recruiting Finke for a long time and created a relationship with him and his family. Now that relationship has to start all over with Underwood. This brings up the question of trust and does Finke have trust in what Underwood is building.

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