Illinois Basketball: Illini in contact with graduate transfer Ray Salnave

There are still a lot of transfers out on the market, and the Illinois basketball team continues to throw their hat in the ring.

The Illini have tried to land a few of the bigger transfers on the market, but they haven’t had the best of luck just yet. But they have made the top list for a few of the transfers. The latest recruit they have started to pursue is Ray Salnave.

Coming out of Benjamin Cardozo High School in New York, Salnave wasn’t the most highly rated recruit. He checked in as the No. 291 player in the class of 2016. He did have some solid scholarship offers, though. He picked up an offer from teams like Dayton and DePaul, but he decided to go with Monmouth.

While with the Hawks, Salnave put up some solid numbers. He averaged 9.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game as a freshman. He followed that up with 11.9 points, 4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals as a sophomore.

This past season was the best for the talented guard. He ended his junior campaign averaging 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.5 steals per contest. Those great numbers enabled Salnave to be a hot commodity on the transfer market.

Salnave did graduate, so he is eligible to play his final year immediately. That makes him an even hotter player on the transfer market. I think he would be a great player to add for the Illini this upcoming season as well.

I think Salnave would be a great scoring option for Illinois off the bench. I don’t see him starting, but I do see him picking up a lot of playing time as a primary backup. He could spell minutes for the No. 2 and 3 roles on the team.

Illinois getting in the mix for Salnave is a good idea. I think we probably lose out to a team that can start him right away, though. But he would be a great depth option for the upcoming season.