Illinois Basketball: Trent Frazier’s legacy with the Illini

Entering his senior season, Trent Frazier has seen the highest of highs and lowest of lows while sporting an Illinois basketball jersey.

Frazier will enter his fourth and final year with the Illinois basketball program with an opportunity to finish the rebuild that Brad Underwood started upon his arrival in Champaign in 2017. Frazier has remained committed to the program since the beginning and was part of the program’s best turnaround in over a decade.

The 2019-2020 season saw the Illini improve from 12 wins to 21 wins, including major road victories against Penn State, Wisconsin, and Michigan along the way.

Frazier was a key asset in the team’s resurgence, as he appeared in 30 of the team’s 31 games, while scoring double figures in 12 contests and led the Illini in steals with 29 takeaways. He also captured his 1,000 career point in a January home game against Northwestern, becoming the 50th player in school history to achieve this milestone.

While Illinois’ magical season was cut short due to COVID-19, the Wellington, Florida product opted to return for his senior year in search of a March Madness appearance, conference title, and national championship berth.

Frazier remains part of the core group that includes Ayo Dosunmu, Kofi Cockburn, Giorgi Bezhanishvili, and Da’Monte Williams, which should make Illinois one of the nation’s most prolific and exciting offenses.

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Will an Illinois season actually happen?

It is currently unknown if a season will happen, but if it can be done safely, Illinois has the potential to have its best year since its national title berth in 2005. In some preseason polls, they have been ranked as high as sixth, which makes the ceiling immensely high for the Big Ten’s most improved squad of 2019.

Only time will tell with what the future holds, but when November rolls around, Champaign will be rocking.