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

5. Illinois front court has been something special

This isn’t your Kofi Cockburn Illinois basketball program anymore. Those were the days when the big man dominated the paint, and the Illini would go through Kofi on a nightly basis.

Illinois has become a more guard-oriented basketball team over the past couple of years. With that being said, I think it makes what the Illinois frontcourt has done even more special.

Brad Underwood is going through players like Terrence Shannon Jr., Marcus Domask, and Ty Rodgers. These players have the ball in their hands the most, but despite getting reduced minutes, the Illini frontcourt has played some great basketball.

Dain Dainja has surprised me greatly this season. He is only logging 14.6 minutes per game, but he has put up insane numbers. He is second on the team in scoring and blocks with 9.2 points and 1.0 blocks per game. He is also pulling down 4.8 rebounds per contest. That is incredible production for just 14.6 minutes of action. I do want to point out his massive flaw of 15.4% from the free throw line.

Illinois has also gotten big-time production out of freshman Amani Hansberry. When he steps onto the court, he is electric. Hansberry brings great energy and production to the frontcourt. He is averaging 5.3 rebounds per game, which is third on the team. Hansberry also contributes 4.3 points and 1.3 assists per game in 14.3 minutes per contest.

Entering the 2023-24 campaign, I thought the Illinois frontcourt was going to be our weakness. That doesn’t seem to be the case at all. We have a couple of big-time big men who can hold their own in the paint.