Illinois Basketball: Illini should avoid this transfer portal guard

Illinois basketball continues to be busy this offseason, as we are in the meat of the transfer portal action.

There have already been numerous reports of the Illini contacting players throughout the country. The players who enter the transfer portal are looking for a fresh start for one reason or another, and Illinois could end up being that cushy landing spot.

A player who is now on the radar of Brad Underwood and the Illinois coaching staff is John Tonje. He is a Colorado State transfer who has a ton of skill and wants to display his talents at a higher level.

On Thursday, Jake Weingarten of Stockrisers reported that there were a number of teams that have already reached out to Tonje. Among the programs listed in the tweet was Illinois.

Pursuing John Tonje in the transfer portal doesn’t make sense for the Illinois basketball program

Tonje has put up some good numbers with the Rams. This past season, he averaged 14.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. He also shot 47.3% from the field and 38.9% from three-point range. The ability to shoot from deep is impressive.

But this is a player who I think would mess up some of the young guys on the team. Tonje is clearly going to want to come into a bigger program and start from day one, and he should want to start. He has the numbers to be a really good player in high-level DI basketball.

I don’t think Illinois is that place, though. I don’t want to bring in someone who is going to start over the younger guys on the team. Jayden Epps, Luke Goode, Ty Rodgers, Sencire Harris, and Dain Dainja all should be the frontrunners for starting jobs this upcoming season. I think RJ Melendez is right there as well.

Bringing in a guy like Tonje would, potentially, bump a player like Goode or Harris to the bench. I don’t want that. Goode has shown he has the shot to start in the Big Ten, and Harris might be the best defensive player on the team.

Tonje would come into the Illinois basketball program and play the No. 2 or No. 3 spots. We already have starters in those roles. I understand going into the transfer portal and trying to get talent, but I think this is a player we want to avoid because of the talent that is already on the team.