Illinois Basketball: Where does Kofi Cockburn rank among top 5 Illini center commits since 2000

4. Shaun Pruitt – Class of 2004 (4-star, #65 overall, .9731 rating)

The only player on this list who has experienced a national title run for the Illinois basketball team is Shaun Pruitt. He was a highly touted big man who could have been the bridge from the title run team to the new era of the Orange and Blue.

Pruitt was a 6-foot-8, 220-pound power forward coming out of West Aurora High School in Aurora, Illinois. He was rated as a four-star recruit who was the No. 65 player in the class of 2004 and the No. 14 power forward in the nation. He was also the No. 2 player in the state of Illinois and had a class rating of .9731.

While 247Sports had Pruitt at 6-foot-8, the Illinois website lists him at 6-foot-10 during his career. He was always a traditional big man who put up okay numbers throughout his time with the Illini. He played in 21 games during the title run and averaged 1.4 points and 0.9 rebounds per game.

Pruitt then transformed into a starter his final three seasons. His best year was his senior campaign where he averaged 12.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. But his final two years with the team weren’t great. The Illini were a No. 12 seed his junior year and lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The team was then 16-19 during his senior campaign.