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Illinois Basketball: Bryce Golden would complete the Illini roster

By Rees Woodcock

PISCATAWAY, NJ - FEBRUARY 25: Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood during the first half of the College Basketball Game between the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Illinois Fighting Illini on February 25, 2018, at the Louis Brown Athletic Center in Piscataway, NJ. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
PISCATAWAY, NJ - FEBRUARY 25: Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood during the first half of the College Basketball Game between the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Illinois Fighting Illini on February 25, 2018, at the Louis Brown Athletic Center in Piscataway, NJ. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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The Illinois basketball recruiting scene has been fun as of late.

Illinois has secured a few commitments in the last two weeks after a barrage of departures. The team is hardly recognizable from a few years ago, but the changes are for the better and I want players who want to be in Champaign.

There is one more player to add to the class of 2018, though. Illinois has six players already signed up led by five-star guard Ayo Dosunmu. Tevian Jones is the next highest rated recruit coming in as a four-star. The other four players coming into the Illinois program are all three-star recruits who will make an impact on the team. With one scholarship left, what position should the Illini snag?

I think the obvious answer here is a big man. I am not necessarily talking about someone who is 7-foot tall, but someone who is 6-foot-8 or taller who can either play the No. 4 or No. 5 spot for the Illini.

There have been a few options come and go. Austin Trice would have been nice, but he decided to commit to play for Bruce Weber and the Kansas State Wildcats. Blake Hinson could be another option, but he might be difficult to pull toward the Illini, according to Kedric Prince of Rivals.

One player to emerge as a serious candidate for the final spot in 2018 is Bryce Golden. He is a 6-foot-9, 220-pound forward from St. James School in Sharpsburg, Maryland. He is rated as a three-star recruit who is the No. 185 player in the class of 2018 and the No. 7 player in the state of Maryland.

When Kevin Stallings was with the Pittsburg Panthers, the team recruited Golden hard and ended up landing him on June 15 of last year. Golden even signed his letter of intent back in November of 2017 as well. But, the bottom fell out on Stallings and he was ultimately let go. This enabled Golden to open his recruitment back up.

Since Golden opened his recruitment up, he has heard from a wide variety of programs but cut his list down to just Georgetown, Syracuse, Butler, UConn, Wichita State and Illinois. This list is according to The Post Up.

Illinois seems to have made Golden a priority. They need one more piece and it needs to be someone who can play the No. 4 or No. 5. I love what he brings to the table. He is a true paint player who specializes in posting up. Illinois needs to replace Leron Black who had the ability to back down a man in the paint, and I think Golden is the man for the job.

Next: Projected Illini starting lineup with Andres Feliz

I think it would be a great get for Illinois to snag Golden. They need someone like him to finish out the roster. I hope they don’t miss on this Golden opportunity.

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