Illinois Basketball: 5 observations from the Illini win vs Iowa

3. Andre Curbelo is so close to being a superstar

I would imagine Illinois fans were getting upset with Andre Curbelo on Sunday night. The kid has so much energy and goes through bouts of reckless basketball that can put Illinois behind the eight-ball.

But when Curbelo is on the basketball court, Illinois functions much better as a team. They have more options when he is running the point.

When Curbelo has the ball, he alone is a threat with driving the lane or finding someone like Kofi Cockburn down low for an easy bucket. Much like Kofi, Curbelo draws so much attention, which leaves other Illini players more open on the perimeter. This enables easier buckets from long range.

Brad Underwood decided to use Curbelo for 22 minutes against Iowa. In that 22 minutes of action, he put up 14 points, six assists, four rebounds, and one steal. Curbelo did have four turnovers, which are brutal at times, and he has to correct those mistakes moving forward.

At the end of the day, I think Curbelo is so close to being a superstar, though. He can get to the rim and score. He can dish the ball with the best of the best in the college game. He has a great command of the offense as well. The one thing I believe he is missing that would make him that superstar is a three-point shot.

Teams realize that Curbelo isn’t the best shooter from long range. He was only 1-of-4 from three-point range against Iowa on Sunday night. They were wide-open shots too. If Curbelo could start hitting those shots more frequently, he would be the most dynamic player in the college game.

Three-point shooting should be a focus for Curbelo this offseason. The kid has so many weapons in his arsenal, but three-point shooting is his kryptonite. Let’s change that.