Illinois Basketball: Pair of Illini targets back on the board
The Illinois basketball team seems to be getting closer to landing their first commitment for the class of 2019.
The hottest player on the radar right now is Oscar Tshiebwe. He is the five-star center who has the Illini in his top four teams and will be taking an official visit to Champaign in the next month. Beyond Tshiebwe, it is hard to tell which player or players will be deciding soon. There are a couple new targets who are back on the board, though.
When Chicago product Terrence Shannon committed to DePaul back on August 12, I thought his recruitment was done. The Illini officially lost out to a weaker team from up north. But, Shannon ended up reopening his recruitment less than a week later. This gave me a renewed sense of hope to land the talented wing.
The recruiting hope didn’t stop rising, though. Just a few days ago, on August 24, his Mac Irvin Fire teammate Markese Jacobs decided to de-commit from Kansas. This was a huge surprise to me considering how long Jacobs had been committed to the Jayhawks. He is another Chicago recruit who is now back on the board. In addition to him de-committing, Illinois came in with an offer the next day.
I do have my hopes up to land both Shannon and Jacobs for the class of 2019. But, I don’t have my hopes too high. I realize both could have picked the Illini from day one and didn’t. They decided to go elsewhere. Illinois has another chance, though.
I would bet both of these players are a package deal as well. My biggest fear with their recruitment is the possibility of Florida State landing both of them. Shannon seems to really like the Seminoles and right after Jacobs de-committed, Florida State came through with an offer to him as well. They are a serious contender in both recruitments.
Next. Class of 2019 that would work best for the Illini. dark
Illinois needs to land some big recruits for the class of 2019. Brad Underwood and his coaching staff have done an okay job recruiting so far. This class could be a make or break when it comes to the judgment of the type of recruiters we have in Champaign. Landing both of these recruits would help.