Illinois Basketball: Illini mentioned in latest Nimari Burnett interview

There are a handful of recruits who the Illinois basketball team has been eyeing for the class of 2020.

Brad Underwood and the Illini coaching staff have done a great job building relationships with a multitude of players. One player who has been on the radar of this coaching staff for quite some time is Nimari Burnett.

Burnett is a 6-foot-3, 180-pound combo guard from Prolific Prep in Napa, California. He is rated as a four-star recruit who is the No. 29 player in the class of 2020 and the No. 3 combo guard in the nation. He is also the No. 6 player in the state of California as well.

Jake Weingarten of Stockrisers had a chance to catch up with Burnett about how his recruitment is going and who is on him the most. Burnett did mention that he has two unofficial visits coming up. He will be visiting Louisville and Michigan on the weekend of February 22. But, there are a handful of teams he mentions who have been on him the most.

Burnett goes on to say a little bit about Ohio State, Louisville, USC, Arizona, Indiana, Marquette and Illinois. Here is what he had to say about the Illini.

"“Illinois comes at me hard and the coaches love my game. They believe I can be an impactful player.”"

Illinois being in the running for Burnett is a big deal. This kid has supreme talent and can be the next great guard for the Illini. I believe we have a chance at potentially landing him as well because of where is from.

Yes, Burnett plays for Prolific Prep out in California, but he isn’t from out west. He transferred to Prolific Prep from Morgan Park High School in Chicago back in the summer of 2017. He has spent the last two years out on the west coast, but Illinois has a solid pitch about bringing him back home.

I had a chance to talk with Burnett back in September 2018 and, at the time, he was looking for a combination of good coaching, good academics and a great environment to get better and have fun. All of these things are checked off with the Illini, plus they have a great location.

Underwood and the staff he has hired have done a great job on the recruiting trail. Bringing a player like Burnett back home would be another great get. He would be a great replacement for Ayo Dosunmu when he goes to the NBA.