Illinois Basketball: Morez Johnson Jr. finally getting the national love

Illinois basketball continues to hit the recruiting trail hard, and it is paying off with some big-time commitments.

Brad Underwood has done wonders with the Illini recruiting scene. We went from struggling to land top-end recruits to having some of the biggest names in the college game come to Champaign.

From Ayo Dosunmu to Kofi Cockburn to Ty Rodgers and everyone in between. These players have all been pretty special. But I would make an argument, without even seeing him suit up for the Orange and Blue, that Morez Johnson Jr. could end up being the best of the bunch.

Johnson is the only player committed to the Illinois class of 2024 thus far. That will surely change, as Underwood hasn’t let the program down in the past and has been able to land talented players each year.

Illinois basketball commit Morez Johnson Jr. is finally getting his recognition by the recruiting sites

On Tuesday, Rivals updated the class of 2024 recruiting rankings. Before the update, Johnson was the No. 57 player in the country. After the update, the talented big man is sitting at No. 31 in the class of 2024.

In the recent update, this 26-spot jump is one of the biggest for Rivals. Johnson is now eyed as one of the top players in the country by recruiting sites, and honestly, it was a long time coming.

Opinion

I have said it before and will say it again: Johnson is a rare talent. He is a superstar quality player that doesn’t come around often. Illinois fans will be talking about him for years to come.

Rivals moved Johnson up to where he always should have been ranked. At No. 31, there is a legit shot that he makes the McDonald’s All-American game in 2024.

This update from Rivals also comes on the heels of 247Sports updating their recruiting rankings for 2024. On June 8, 247Sports moved Johnson from No. 55 to No. 46 in the country, which is not a big enough move in my opinion.

Regardless, Johnson is one of the top players in the country. He is a player who is going to come into the Illinois program and make us one of the best teams in the country from day one. Let’s build around this generational talent.