Illinois Basketball: Illini targeting 2023 Pennsylvania forward

Illinois basketball is still looking for their first commitment for the class of 2023.

So far, the Illini have secured a top 10 class for 2022, and the 2024 group is looking strong with a commitment from ZZ Clark and a top 50 forward in Morez Johnson. But the 2023 class hasn’t picked up steam just yet, as there have been exactly zero commitments for this group.

Brad Underwood and the Illini coaching staff are trying to get that to change, though. A new name Illinois is now targeting in hopes of adding to their 2023 class is Thomas Haugh.

Haugh is a 6-foot-9, 200-pound power forward from Perkiomen School and resides in Pennsburg, Pennsylvania. He is rated as a three-star recruit and ranked as the No. 41 power forward in the country. Haugh is also the No. 6 player coming out of the state of Pennsylvania.

The scholarship list is starting to get pretty impressive for Haugh. He has roughly 12 scholarships on the table right now with some of the bigger names being Maryland, Rhode Island, and VCU, in addition to Illinois.

Illinois basketball might be able to get in on the Thomas Haugh recruitment.

As of right now, 247Sports has Maryland as “warm” when it comes to Haugh’s interest. That means they see the Terrapins as the favorite due to them being the only “warm” team.

But I think Illinois has a chance to get into the recruitment of Haugh. We aren’t a perennial bubble team anymore. The Illini have been eligible for three-straight NCAA tournaments and have played in the last two. This is a team that is on the verge of doing great things. That gives Underwood a lot of recruiting power.

I like what I see when I watch Haugh play basketball. His length is phenomenal. I love that he is a super athletic kid with that length as well. The shooting ability of Haugh is impressive too. He honestly reminds me a lot of a more athletic and better defending Michael Finke.

Illinois getting in the mix for Haugh is a good idea. I see him being a nice rotational player who can develop into a starter with the program. This kid has a bright future ahead.