Illinois Basketball: Landers Nolley decision date move good news for Illini?

There are a few big-time recruits the Illinois basketball team needs to land for the class of 2018. Landers Nolley is one of those players.

Today, Stephen Rodgers of Basketball Society and D1Vision announced that Nolley has decided to move his commitment date up. He was originally scheduled to announce his commitment on October 31 but now has moved it up to October 7. Rodgers broke down Nolley’s recruitment yesterday and laid out all of his official visits.

The visit schedule is as follows; Illinois September 8, Virginia Tech September 29, Georgia State October 6, Georgia October 13 and Wichita State October 20. What this means to me is, Nolley wants to commit to one of the first three schools that gets his visit and then will still probably take the final two visits to see what those programs are like. So, if that is the case, the decision for him will come down to Illinois, Virginia Tech and Georgia State.

If that is the case, I really like Illinois’ chances of landing this talented player. They need a wing like Nolley to really help solidify their chances of making the NCAA tournament next season. When talking about Illinois, Nolley even said some powerful words about where they are in his recruitment.

"“Coach (Brad) Underwood and the whole staff also came to my house and told me how they need me to come in and help as a freshman right away. I went on my visit and I like it a lot. I mean it was my first official visit, so the other schools have work to do.”"

Underwood’s words aren’t hollow here either. He means what he saying because there is a mix of need for the Illini and talent that Nolley brings to the table. He is a 6-foot-4, 175-pound four-star who is the No. 57 player in the class of 2018 and the No. 13 small forward in the nation. That is a huge reason he would see playing time right away.

Another reason is because Illinois needs depth at the No. 3 spot. They will have Te’Jon Lucas and Mark Smith start at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots this season and likely next season as well. But, the No. 3 spot will be wide open after Mark Alstork leaves. That would leave plenty of room for Nolley to come in and start day one.

Next: George Conditt and Landers Nolley first two to sign?

The news of Nolley moving his commitment date up to October 7 is great news for the Illini. They were his first official visit and, hopefully, they made such an impact he will commit to the Orange and Blue in a few weeks.