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Illinois Basketball: Top 5 Illini targets for 2024 after losing ZZ Clark

By Rees Woodcock

CHAMPAIGN, IL - DECEMBER 06: General view of Illinois Fighting Illini basketballs seen before the game against the IUPUI Jaguars at State Farm Center on December 6, 2016 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - DECEMBER 06: General view of Illinois Fighting Illini basketballs seen before the game against the IUPUI Jaguars at State Farm Center on December 6, 2016 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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CHAMPAIGN , IL – NOVEMBER 13: The Illinois Fighting Illini logo on the floor before a college basketball game against the Georgetown Hoyas at the State Farm Center on November 13, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /

4. Isaiah Evans

Illinois is always looking for a talented athlete who can play out on the wing, and they could find that recruit in Isaiah Evans.

Evans is a 6-foot-6, 165-pound small forward from North Mecklenburg High School in Huntersville, North Carolina. He is rated as a five-star recruit and ranked as the No. 16 player in the class of 2024. He is also the No. 5 small forward in the nation and the No. 2 player coming out of North Carolina.

Recruiting the state of North Carolina is nothing new to the Illinois coaching staff. The Illini landed the top player in North Carolina in 2022, Jayden Epps, so adding another talented North Carolina player shouldn’t be a stretch.

Illinois is also putting resources into recruiting Evans. The Illini coaching staff was in to visit Evans in the past couple of weeks, and it wouldn’t shock me to see them head down to watch a high school game this winter.

This would be a huge commitment for Illinois, as Evans is ranked as one of the best players in the country. With some departures over the next couple of seasons, Illinois is going to need more talent out on the wing.

But this won’t be an easy recruitment to win. There are numerous reports of who is recruiting Evans with Tennessee, Cincinnati, Florida State, and Boston College being some of the names right now. With Evans rising in the recruiting rankings, look for North Carolina and Duke to be sniffing around soon too.

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