Illinois Basketball: Projected Illini lineup after missing on Tyty Washington

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Mar 1, 2020; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood looks on during the first half against the Indiana Hoosiers at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports /

Illinois basketball just received some sad news as big-time recruit Tyty Washington has picked Creighton over the Illini.

The Illini still have only one commitment for the class of 2021, which is Luke Goode. He will be a tremendous asset for this program, but he needs running mates.

With Washington not pick the Orange and Blue, what is the lineup projected to look like?

Here is the projected Illini lineup after missing on Tyty Washington.

No. 1 Guard

Starter: Andre Curbelo

Illinois basketball is going to be set for a while at the No. 1 guard spot as the starter for the 2021-22 campaign should be Andre Curbelo. The Long Island Lutheran star is coming into the Illinois program in 2020 and should be able to cut his teeth early on with the Illini.

Curbelo should be the primary backup to Ayo Dosunmu during his freshman season. After Ayo departs for the NBA Draft, Curbelo would then move into the starting role at the No. 1 guard spot. This is where Curbelo will shine for the Illini. I expect the four-star recruit to really fine-tune his game as a freshman where he doesn’t have to be a primary player. This will enable him to be a leader as a sophomore where he can mentor the incoming freshmen.

Recruit #1

This is where I saw Tyty Washington checking in as a freshman. He would have been a perfect backup to Curbelo in year one. But Washington picked Creighton over Illinois, so we now have to find another option.

I believe one of the three scholarships Illinois has open should be used on another point guard. We need someone solid backing up Curbelo. There is a chance that Curbelo doesn’t spend all four years with the Illini too. So, we need a backup plan, literally, for Curbelo.

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