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Illinois Basketball: Breaking down the center position without Samba Kane

By Rees Woodcock

MIDDLE VILLAGE, NEW YORK - APRIL 05: Gerald Drumgoole #4 of La Lumiere battles for the ball with Kofi Cockburn #21 of Oak Hill Academy in the semifinal of the GEICO High School National Tournament at Christ the King High School on April 05, 2019 in Middle Village, New York. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)
MIDDLE VILLAGE, NEW YORK - APRIL 05: Gerald Drumgoole #4 of La Lumiere battles for the ball with Kofi Cockburn #21 of Oak Hill Academy in the semifinal of the GEICO High School National Tournament at Christ the King High School on April 05, 2019 in Middle Village, New York. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images) /
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It always hurts when the Illinois basketball team loses a member of the family to transfer.

This is the case with Samba Kane. The 7-foot, 200-pound center decided he didn’t want to play for Brad Underwood and the Illini coaching staff anymore. I have heard some people say this is a black mark on Underwood’s resume, but I see this transfer as a no-brainer. Kane wasn’t going to get much playing time in the next one or two seasons. That would make him a senior by the time he gets a chance to start. A transfer seems like an obvious move.

But now that Illinois is losing a No. 5 on their team, what will this position look like moving forward?

I am locking Kofi Cockburn in as the starting No. 5 for the upcoming season. You don’t land a top 50 recruit and one of the top big men in the country to let him ride the pine. I am not sure how many minutes he will see each night, but he is going to start this season.

Depending on how well Cockburn does on the floor during his freshman season will determine if he is around as a sophomore. My guess is that Cockburn returns for year two with the Illini. This, most likely, will be his final season with the program, but he will be around for two years.

I would bet that when Cockburn needs a rest on the court this upcoming season that Giorgi Bezhanishvili will shift over to the No. 5 spot and the Illini will go with a small lineup. That would make the most sense to me. Giorgi did a great job last season filling in at the No. 5 as the Illini didn’t have depth at the position.

But, purely for on-paper purposes, Bernard Kouma is going to be the backup to Cockburn this upcoming season. He is a 6-foot-10, 240-pound freshman. With Kane transferring, there is no option for Kouma to take a redshirt. I have him backing up Cockburn for at least this season.

Who knows what the future holds, though? The class of 2020 could bring in a solid backup center for Cockburn during his sophomore campaign, and then that player could take over when Cockburn departs for the NBA. My main target for this role would be Ryan Kalkbrenner. This kid can play and is a defensive specialist.

Next. 5 players most likely to commit to the Illini for 2020. dark

This is how the No. 5 spot is looking as of right now. The Kane departure does hurt the program because now we have more question marks at the backup role. But we should be okay since we aren’t losing a starter. Cockburn should stabilize the position.

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