Illinois Basketball: Top 5 NBA prospects on the Illini roster

IOWA CITY. IA- FEBRUARY 02: Illinois head coach Brad Underwood has words with Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) during a time out during a Big Ten Conference basketball game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Iowa Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City Ia, on February 02, 2020. Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
IOWA CITY. IA- FEBRUARY 02: Illinois head coach Brad Underwood has words with Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu (11) during a time out during a Big Ten Conference basketball game between the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Iowa Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City Ia, on February 02, 2020. Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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CHAMPAIGN, IL – JANUARY 30: Illinois Fighting Illini center Kofi Cockburn (21) walks across the court during the Big Ten Conference college basketball game between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Illinois Fighting Illini on January 30, 2020, at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

3. Kofi Cockburn

Draft Year Projection: 2021 NBA Draft

Kofi decided to test the NBA waters after year one and simply did not get much traction. There is a ton of work to do but the physical development and increased athleticism show very optimistic signs.

While Kofi could easily be higher on this list, there simply are not very many big men in the league who do not space the floor past the paint without being ferocious athletes. The sophomore’s physical power and shot-blocking ability jump off the page, but I cannot see him garnering too much NBA stock if he doesn’t make a massive jump as an athlete or extend his range to be a consistent mid-range threat.

A Steven Adams or Mason Plumlee type of trajectory does make sense, but both are extremely intelligent with their screen setting and rebounding ability. To be clear, Kofi is just not close yet but all the tools are visible.