Illinois Basketball: Illini extend offer to 2022’s Jai Smith

The recent New York transfer is the latest underclassmen to get offered by the Illinois basketball program.

As Big Ten play gets underway for the Illini this week, so does its recruiting spree and potential future program success. The Orange and Blue became the latest school to offer Jai Smith, a 6-foot-9, 235-pound power forward from Syracuse, New York.

Smith is a member of the 2022 class and is rated as a three-star recruit and the No. 4 player in the state. At his position, he comes in as the No. 30 power forward in the country while being ranked No. 150 nationwide for his age group.

The Illini offered Smith last Saturday, adding to a solid mix of prominent basketball schools from around the country. Including Illinois, Smith has looks from Kansas, Maryland, Alabama, and Arizona, to name a few.

Smith attends Bull City Prep High School, a program that has a plethora of players who have gone on to play at the collegiate level. In the last few years, however, one alumnus has stood out. Isaiah Hicks, according to the basketball team page, played for North Carolina and helped lead the Tar Heels to a national championship before joining the coaching staff at Bull City Prep High School.

As for Smith himself, he has had a meteoric rise to stardom. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he made an executive decision to transfer to Bull City Prep after spending three years as a starter on Bishop-Ludden’s varsity team, including his eighth-grade year.

Smith’s head coach, Darryl Harris, spoke highly of the young junior in an August interview prior to the beginning of the basketball season.

"”He is an elite rebounder,” Harris told Syracuse.com. “He runs the floor following up the shot. On a fast break, when there’s a missed shot, almost every time he’s tipping it, getting the rebound and putting it back in or he’s just putting it back on the follow-up. He runs the floor. He plays really hard. But I think his athleticism catches your attention immediately.”"

For Smith, he was grateful that the coaching staff took a chance on him and hopes that playing elite competition will prepare him for the next level upon graduation, despite it being an “online-only” prep school.

"“It’s just a really good fit. I like the place. It’s in a really good neighborhood,” Smith explained."

What would Jai Smith bring to Champaign?

Smith could eventually become a tremendous asset for Brad Underwood in a few years. His big and athletic frame is difficult to stop on both ends of the floor and could make for a great replacement once Kofi Cockburn or D’Monte Williams depart from the squad.

Illini fans should be excited for the future of the program, as they look to be in a tight race to land a promising prospect in the near future.