Illinois Basketball: Adam Miller and DJ Steward best in-state duo?

Could the Illinois basketball team land the state of Illinois’ finest duo?

That question is one that will eventually be answered. The combination of Adam Miller and DJ Steward is undisputedly the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the state of Illinois. These two would form the best duo in Illinois as said by Alcantara Edits. Where do these two stack up compared to the state of Illinois recruiting classes of the past?

Miller is a four-star guard who is the No. 28 player in the class of 2020 and the No. 5 shooting guard in the nation. He also has a .9886 rating by 247Sports. Steward is right there with Miller as well. He is a four-star guard who is the No. 42 player in the class of 2020 and the No. 6 combo guard in the nation. He also has a .9834 rating by 247Sports. They have a combined .986 average rating.

The combination of Miller and Steward easily surpass the class of 2019 which featured EJ Liddell as the best player and Markese Jacobs as the second-best player. Liddell had a rating of .9832 and Jacobs checked in at .9230. These two finished with a .9531 rating. But where do the duo of Miller and Steward rank in the state of Illinois over the last decade?

Jahlil Okafor and Cliff Alexander check in as the highest rated duo from the state of Illinois in the last decade. They had an average rating of .99915 and were the No. 1 and No. 4 players in the country, respectively.

There have been some great duos throughout the years. With all of the great talent from the state of Illinois, the duo of Miller and Steward check in as the No. 5 duo in the last decade. They are not far behind the top four, though. Miller and Steward are behind Okafor and Alexander, Anthony Davis and Wayne Blackshear, Jereme Richmond and Meyers Leonard and Jabari Parker and Kendrick Nunn.

What this list shows me is that Illinois has had some success but not enough with the top players from the state. We have only landed three out of the 10 players in the top duos over the last decade. That isn’t a great rate. But that all could start changing with the class of 2020.

I think it is clear that both Miller and Steward are needed on the Illinois roster. Ayo Dosunmu is gone after this season as well as his backup Andres Feliz. That leaves a massive hole at guard. Let’s not forget that Trent Frazier has a maximum of two more seasons with the Illini as well. There needs to be more guard help coming into the program.

Miller and Steward could find a way to work together and dominate for the Orange and Blue. One could transition into more of a No. 1 guard role while the other is at the No. 2 spot, or they could play the No. 2 and No. 3 and the Illini brings in a No. 1 guard to distribute the ball more.

Either way, I love the options for the Illini. If we could land both Miller and Steward, the future would be extremely bright. I can’t wait to see what happens over the next few months with these recruitments.