Illinois Basketball: Projected Illini lineup with the addition of Brandon Lieb

No. 2 Guard

Starter: Trent Frazier

I believe the starter at the No. 2 spot is going to be someone who every Illinois fan is familiar with. This is a spot for Trent Frazier. He played this role last season, and he should be able to control the No. 2 spot in 2020-21.

Despite last season being a slight down year, Frazier still impressed with his on-court play. He finished his junior year averaging 9.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. I look for Frazier to have similar numbers, if not better, for his senior year. As a veteran leader on a young team, Frazier should be one of the main contributors for this program.

Backup: Jacob Grandison

Depth was a major concern for Illinois entering the upcoming campaign. Losing three huge pieces like Kofi Cockburn, Ayo Dosunmu and Andres Feliz will hurt any program. That is why snagging someone like Jacob Grandison from the transfer market last year was huge.

Grandison was a huge piece to the Holy Cross puzzle the last couple of seasons. Just his sophomore year alone, Grandison averaged 13.9 points, 5 rebounds and 2.9 assists. I don’t expect those numbers as a backup, but if Illinois could get anywhere near that production, then I think we could do some special things. It is comforting knowing we have depth like Grandison.