Brad Underwood is wheeling and dealing on the basketball court, and now he has Illinois basketball in the middle of a massive recruitment.
On Wednesday, Joe Tipton of On3.com reported that the Illini were hosting Boyuan Zhang for an official visit that day. This news came as a pleasant surprise.
According to Tipton, Rivals has Zhang as the No. 35 player in the class of 2026. Zhang is a 6-foot-7, 205-pound small forward from Veritas Academy in California. According to 247Sports, the Chinese native is a three-star recruit who is the No. 221 player in the class of 2026 and the No. 65 small forward in the country. He is also the No. 23 player coming out of California.
Source: Boyuan Zhang, Rivals' No. 35 overall prospect in the 2026 class, will take an official visit to Illinois today.
— Joe Tipton (@JoeTipton) January 7, 2026
The 6-foot-8 wing has been a major stockriser this season. https://t.co/TQtgSgvJ1U pic.twitter.com/ru0m9tlrEX
It is pretty simple to see, Zhang is a rising star who has no ceiling. Rivals has clearly caught on to his great play, and when it is all said and done, so will 247Sports.
There is a good reason that people think so highly of this kid. Zhang is putting up some impressive numbers in his final season at Veritas Academy.
Right now, Zhang is playing for Veritas Academy in the EYBL Scholastic league, which is a whole bunch of elite high school programs in a league spanning across the country.
So far, Veritas is 4-2 this season, with the only losses coming to traditional powerhouse programs in Link Academy and Oak Hill Academy. Zhang has been a major part of their success, too.
Zhang is averaging a blistering 20.8 points per game through the first six contests, which ranks No. 2 in the league. He is only behind Anthony Felesi, a top 50 recruit, who is averaging 25.0 points per game.
Another metric that impresses me is the fact that Zhang is 13-of-35 this season from three-point range. That is 37.1% for those counting at home. The volume of three-pointers taken and the shooting percentage match up.
Boyuan Zhang would be a perfect match for Brad Underwood’s Illinois basketball offense
I think this is one of the bigger official visits that I can remember. Zhang isn’t ranked highly right now by some recruiting sites, but he is going to skyrocket in the coming weeks and months.
Moreover, I think the fit with the Illini is more important. The way Zhang plays basketball would fit in seamlessly with what Underwood wants to do on the court.
Zhang moves so well without the ball in his hands. He doesn’t need to be a ball-dominant player, and that is what Illinois needs more of. Players can affect a game positively with or without the ball. LeBron James is a ball-dominant player who can do great things and elevate his teammates. Steph Curry is not a ball-dominant player, but he affects the game with his movements and ability to get open and knock down shots.
When I see Zhang’s game, he is more in the Curry camp. Zhang moves so well without the ball. He can use screens to create space, and that is so important in Underwood’s offense. Stagnant play gets the Illini killed, but Zhang is the opposite of that.
While his recruiting ranking is fun to look at, the style of play that Zhang would bring to Illinois is way more important. That is why the official visit he is on right now is one of the most crucial visits in quite some time.