Illinois Basketball: 5 surprises to start the 2023-24 Illini season

2. Will the real Coleman Hawkins please stand up

Last season was pretty special for Coleman Hawkins. He was a unicorn for the Illinois basketball program, as the big man stood at 6-foot-10 and could do everything on the court.

I was fully expecting Hawkins to have a special 2023-24 campaign. He averaged 9.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 1.1 steals per game last year. He entered the NBA Draft, got advice from scouts, and came back for one more season in the college ranks.

This offseason was supposed to be about improving the weak areas of Hawkins’ game. Work on what the scouts told him were his weaknesses and dominate the 2023-24 season. That isn’t happening, though.

Hawkins’ numbers have either plateaued or dropped across the board. While he has missed the last couple of games, Hawkins has averaged 4.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 blocks, and hasn’t logged a steal yet. He has also bumped up his turnovers from 2.5 turnovers per game to 3.0 turnovers per game.

I wasn’t expecting a regression from Hawkins this season. He is too good of a player to take a step backward. I want to see this kid succeed, but plain and simple, he has not been good for this program through the three games he has played.

Hawkins will come out of the funk sometime in the near future. When he does, it will help the Illini tremendously. But Hawkins’ play this season has been a surprise to me thus far.