Skip to main content
Writing Illini
Fansided

Grit and guts is back for Illinois basketball, as transfer portal spurned again

Illinois basketball has done a great job retaining talent, and the trend continued on Wednesday.
ByRees Woodcock|
Share on FacebookShare on XShare on Reddit
Google Discover
Apr 4, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; UConn Huskies guard Solo Ball (1) fouls Illinois Fighting Illini forward Jake Davis (15) in the second half during a semifinal of the Final Four of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
Apr 4, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; UConn Huskies guard Solo Ball (1) fouls Illinois Fighting Illini forward Jake Davis (15) in the second half during a semifinal of the Final Four of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Not every Illinois basketball offseason announcement is going to get a ton of fanfare.

The Illini have had some pretty big players return to the roster for next season. David Mirkovic started things off with his big announcement, cowboy hat and all. The next domino to fall was Tomislav Ivisic coming back.

Illinois had a pretty big Wednesday with just those two returning for next season, but the festivities continued. The Illinois basketball social media account also posted the return of Jake Davis.

Davis came to Illinois after his freshman season with Mercer. He was a dangerous shooter three seasons ago, averaging 38.7% from three-point range.

The first season with Illinois wasn’t great for Davis. He didn’t have the same juice from beyond the three-point arc, dropping to just 34.4% from deep. It was a tough transition in his first year, too.

As a junior, Davis really started to blossom. He was everything Illinois needed. Year-over-year, Davis improved his rebounding, scoring, assists, steals, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and, more importantly, three-point percentage.

Davis shot 34.4% from three-point range as a sophomore, and that number jumped to 40.6% last season. As it states in the social media post, “The Jake Davis Corner Three is SO back.”

Yes. It. Is.

Illinois basketball has great flexibility with Jake Davis now back in the fold

Illinois dealt with some injury issues last season, and this changed Davis’ role on the team. He was supposed to only be a role player off the bench, but Davis was thrown into the starting lineup when Andrej Stojakovic was out.

What ensued was a Final Four run. While I think Davis could start next season, I believe he will probably head back to the bench and be a spark plug for the program.

Regardless of what the decision is, Brad Underwood has great flexibility now that Davis is back. He can have options on what to do with the starting lineup and the bench rotation. There are going to be numerous other players getting shine this offseason, but the retention of Davis is sneaky for the Illini.

Add us as a preferred source on Google
Home/Illinois Basketball