Illinois Basketball: Projected Illini lineup with Kofi Cockburn returning

The best news the Illinois basketball program could possibly receive was dropped on Friday.

Illini fans have endured quite the roller coaster the last few months, but the ride has finally come to an end. Kofi Cockburn has announced that he is returning to the Illinois basketball program for one more season. This is exciting news for Illini Nation.

Kofi is one of the legendary players to come through the program. He dominated the first two seasons in Champaign, and there is no reason to believe he won’t be incredible once again. Kofi returning is going to give the Illinois lineup an amazing boost as well.

Here is the projected Illinois basketball lineup with Kofi Cockburn returning.

No. 1 Guard

Starter: Andre Curbelo

Arguably, the player who will benefit the most from Kofi Cockburn returning to the Illini is Andre Curbelo. The magician at point guard dazzled in his first year with the program, and he should be even better in year two, especially if he has a big man to lob the ball to on a nightly basis.

I have Curbelo moving into the starting No. 1 guard spot now that there is some room on the roster. This is where his game fits the best. Illinois doesn’t have depth at the No. 1 guard spot, though. That means Curbelo is going to see a big minutes increase this season. He should be playing nearly every minute of the game each night.

Backup: Rotation

While there isn’t a true backup point guard on the roster right now, I am sticking with a rotation to help spell minutes when Curbelo needs a rest. This isn’t the ideal situation, but we have enough talent on the roster where it shouldn’t be a problem.

I see Trent Frazier taking over the traditional point guard duties when Curbelo is riding the pine. This won’t happen often, but Frazier has great handles and can lead a team. He has proven this in the past. So, he is my go-to guy when someone needs to fill in for Curbelo.