Some quiet, yet big, news snuck through the Illinois basketball headlines on Sunday afternoon.
First tweeted out by Tajh (@Recru1t1ng_Guru), the Director of Basketball Scouting for 247Sports – Jerry Meyer – moved his prediction of where Kahlil Whitney will wind up to Illinois. Just hours prior, Meyer and Dain Ervin both had Georgetown as the landing spot for Whitney. I know this because I had written an article where the Hoyas were at 100-percent right before the flip happened.
Peep @jerrymeyer247's latest crystal ball pick 👀👀👀 #illini pic.twitter.com/AOPSDOV6cx
— 🆃ⓐ🅹🅷 ♕ (@Recru1t1ng_Guru) June 3, 2018
The last time Ervin updated his pick was about three weeks ago, but the fact Meyer flipped his pick to Illinois just yesterday bodes well for the chances of landing Whitney. This would be a huge pickup for the Illini, but I wonder why the change of heart for Meyer?
Whitney still has a lot of programs after his services, though. In addition to Illinois and Georgetown, he also has the likes of Louisville, St. John’s and Syracuse hounding him, among others. There is a reason all of these teams want him. He is a five-star recruit who is the No. 17 player in the class of 2019 and the No. 4 small forward in the nation. Every team in the United States should want this kid.
I have been steadfast in saying that Whitney would be a game changer for this Illinois basketball team. He is everything you want in a player and more. It is hard to find a good comparison in the NBA to what he brings to the table, though. Whitney has a combination of nice size at 6-foot-7, mixed in with great athletic ability and a shooting touch the rivals some of the best in the college game.
If you combined Cory Bradford with Kipper Nichols and Luther head, you would get Kahlil Whitney. That is how good I think this kid is going to be at the college level. He has superstar written all over him. I think he could win Freshman of the Year in college basketball. I think he could be a first, second or third team All-American year one.
Next: Optimal Illini recruiting class for 2019
I clearly have high regard for Whitney. I couldn’t even imagine watching him play for a year with Ayo Dosunmu and Trent Frazier. That Illinois team could make a deep run in the NCAA tournament. I think special things are happening in Champaign.