4. If Kasparas Jakucionis can’t get right, Illinois is doomed
In the last slide, I talked about health issues. Kasparas Jakucionis is one of the players who has had some issues this season staying on the court.
Back in early January, Jakucionis hurt his left arm and was out for a few games. He was missed greatly, as the USC contest was a wake-up call on how badly Illinois needed this kid on the court.
The star guard made his return in the Indiana game, and everything seemed to go fine. He dropped 21 points that night and shot 3-of-7 from three-point range in the 25-point thumping we put on the Hoosiers.
I think it is pretty clear that not everything is fine with Jakucionis, though. He was only able to give Illinois seven points, two rebounds, two assists on 2-of-8 shooting from the field against Rutgers on Wednesday.
Since returning from injury, Jakucionis’ three-point shooting has been awful. He is just 7-of-35, 20%, from three-point range in the seven games since his return.
Jakucionis just doesn’t have the same spark he had pre-injury. He isn’t as quick and isn’t able to create the same space. I think defenses got better against him, and he isn’t as consistent with his shot due to the injury.
One thing is for certain, if Jakucionis doesn’t get right, Illinois has no chance come March. This kid is a special player who can carry a team. He was our ace. Without Jakucionis playing like Jakucionis, Illinois is just average. He needs to be on his game the rest of the way out.