Illinois basketball made a huge top list on Friday morning as they try to build for the future.
The Illini have a solid group already committed for 2022. Jayden Epps and Sencire Harris are both in the top 100, and Reggie Bass is inside the top 200. Nationally, Illinois has the No. 5 ranked class for 2022 and the No. 2 group in the Big Ten.
But the additions might not be done just yet. The state of Illinois is deep with talent, and the best player coming out of the state is AJ Casey. Despite every team in the country wanting the forward, Casey decided to narrow the scope of his recruitment on Friday morning.
🎱 @WYoungBoysBball @MeanstreetsEYB pic.twitter.com/DGxsYzjGE5
— AJ Casey (@AndreCaseyjr_23) August 5, 2021
The top eight for Casey consist of Marquette, Memphis, Florida, Gonzaga, Ohio State, DePaul, Michigan and Illinois. This is an impressive list of programs, but it is one that doesn’t come as much of a surprise. Every program wants Casey, and these eight teams are some of the best squads in the nation.
Casey would make Illinois basketball one of the national title favorites in 2022.
I know that is a big statement. But it is a statement that would ring true for Casey if he stayed in the state of Illinois and played for the Orange and Blue.
Why is Casey so coveted? Well, the kid is a 6-foot-8, 180-pound forward who has all the skills in the world. 247Sports rates him as a four-star recruit and ranks him as the No. 35 player in the class of 2022. Someone with his size and athletic ability is hard to pass up. But it is more than that for the Illinois basketball program.
Illinois’ roster for the 2022-23 campaign is going to be set up to win again. Andre Curbelo is the leader of the pack and will only be a junior. He’s going to be in the conversation for national player of the year.
Beyond Curbelo, who was a top 50 recruit in 2020, Casey would also be surrounded by a bunch of top 100 recruits. Luke Goode, Brandin Podziemski and RJ Melendez are coming in from the class of 2021 and all landed in the top 100. Epps and Harris are both top 100 guys and coming in from the 2022 class. Omar Payne should be back as a senior for the 2022-23 campaign, and he was a top 100 recruit. So, there are seven top 100 players right there who could all help Casey reach the pinnacle of the college basketball world.
I believe, thanks to COVID, that there is a chance Jacob Grandison and Austin Hutcherson return for another year. I haven’t even mentioned Coleman Hawkins, who is a rising star in his own right.
This Illinois basketball team is poised to win on a consistent basis for years to come. It is reported that the Big Ten hates the Illini. Just imagine if we can land a player like Casey over other Big Ten programs. This recruitment could get very interesting in the coming months.