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Illinois Basketball: 5 reasons the Illini are a top 10 program

By Rees Woodcock

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 21: Kofi Cockburn #21 of the Illinois Fighting Illini reacts to a basket against the Loyola Chicago Ramblers during the first half in the second round game of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 21, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - MARCH 21: Kofi Cockburn #21 of the Illinois Fighting Illini reacts to a basket against the Loyola Chicago Ramblers during the first half in the second round game of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 21, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /
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Illinois basketball
Feb 13, 2021; Stanford, California, USA; Utah Utes guard Alfonso Plummer (25) handles the ball during the second half against the Stanford Cardinal at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Additions outweigh the subtractions

You can’t talk about the potential of the Illinois basketball team this season without mentioning the subtractions the program had from their run last year.

Three big players departed the program. Ayo Dosunmu was the biggest player to leave Illinois, but the subtractions of Adam Miller and Giorgi Bezhanishvili shouldn’t go unnoticed. All three players leaving will hurt the team in some form.

When you add up the production from these three talents, Illinois is going to need to replace 33.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game. Those are the numbers Ayo, Miller, and Giorgi combined for last season.

The returning players will be able to pick up some of that slack. But the new additions to the team are who I will be looking to for most of the production that is missing from the departures.

Alfonso Plummer is the player I will look to for scoring. He was with Utah the past couple of years, and he averaged 13.6 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game with the Utes. I think he could realistically average 10 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game this season.

I count Austin Hutcherson as a new addition to the program, even though he has been with us for a couple of years. Hutcherson hasn’t seen the court for the Illini, but his all-around playmaking abilities will help the program tremendously. The last time he was playing, Hutcherson averaged 20 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game.

Yes, missing Giorgi is going to hurt depth at the No. 5 spot, but Omar Payne is someone who could put up just as good or even better numbers than Giorgi. Payne didn’t see a ton of time with Florida, so his averages were low. If you give him Giorgi-type minutes, then I think Payne can average 5.1 points and 2.7 rebounds with ease.

Just with Plummer, Hutcherson, and Payne, I believe Illinois can make up for the lost production from the three departures. I haven’t even mentioned the freshmen coming into the program. Brandin Podziemski, Luke Goode, and RJ Melendez will all contribute and put up solid stat lines in 2021-22. This team might be more talented than last season.

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