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Illinois Basketball: Grading the projected Illini lineup for 2020-21

By Rees Woodcock

CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 05: Illinois head coach Brad Underwood during a college basketball game between the Purdue Boilermakers and Illinois Fighting Illini on January 5, 2020 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 05: Illinois head coach Brad Underwood during a college basketball game between the Purdue Boilermakers and Illinois Fighting Illini on January 5, 2020 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill (Photo by James Black/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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COLUMBUS, OHIO – MARCH 05: Duane Washington Jr. #4 of the Ohio State Buckeyes takes a shot over Da’Monte Williams #20 of the Illinois Fighting Illini during the first half at Value City Arena on March 05, 2020 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

No. 4 Guard/Forward – B-

  • Da’Monte Williams (SR)
  • Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk (FR)
  • Coleman Hawkins (FR)

When you get into the No. 4 and No. 5 spots, I have my concerns moving forward. Illinois could mask their lack of depth at these positions with the talented big man, Kofi Cockburn. As of right now, Kofi is not on the team anymore, though.

The projected lineup I have for this upcoming season has Da’Monte Williams starting at the No. 4 spot for the Illini. He moved into this role toward the end of last season and it worked for the Illini. So, because there isn’t a ton of talented size for the Illini, I am going to have him starting again.

I love the fact Williams is a senior and a defensive specialist. He brings grit to this team. The depth behind Williams makes me a little nervous, though. I have Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk getting minutes as the backup.

Everyone is excited to see what Verdonk can do on the court. He is super athletic, but he didn’t get much time last season. I see him getting somewhere in the ballpark of 5-10 minutes per game to start the season. If he shows he can play well, then he will probably get a minutes increase.

Behind Verdonk is projected to be incoming freshman, Coleman Hawkins. He is someone who kind of got lost at Prolific Prep because of all of the talent that program had. Hawkins registered as a three-star recruit who was the No. 153 player in the class of 2020. I honestly wouldn’t be shocked if he redshirts this upcoming season.

I gave the No. 4 spot a grade of B- due to the fact there isn’t a ton of proven depth. The offensive side of the court will struggle at times when it comes to the No. 4 spot as well. But Williams’ defensive brings the grade up and so does the potential of Verdonk. I think B- is the perfect grade here.

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