While the season just ended, the Illinois Fighting Illini and head coach Brad Underwood are already hard at work for the next one.
With an appearance in the Final Four, the Illini are officially back to the top of college basketball, and that means the program will only grow more enticing to top recruits and transfer prospects.
Today, the 2026 men's basketball transfer portal officially opened, and that means we could see players coming and going from the program in the blink of an eye, not to mention that current Illini stars will likely declare for the upcoming NBA Draft in the coming days.
Here is every move that Underwood's players are making, and who Underwood and his staff are bringing to Champaign for next season:
Illinois basketball transfer portal additions
- Stefan Vaaks, shooting guard from Providence
While only two Illinois players have entered their names into the transfer portal, dozens of athletes at other programs have already done so, many of whom Underwood will target to replace stars like Keaton Wagler, Kylan Boswell, and others who will almost undoubtedly no longer be with the team next season.
Already, Illinois has roped in one of the top 15 transfer portal players in Stefan Vaaks. He is going to fit in nicely with the Balkan Five and other key Illinois cogs next season.
Illinois basketball transfer portal departures
- Toni Bilic, small forward
- Mihailo Petrovic, point guard
- Brandon Lee, shooting guard
- Ty Rodgers, small forward
Illinois has suffered just four transfer portal departures since the offseason commenced. Those two departures shouldn't hurt the program too much, though.
Toni Bilic entered the program halfway through last season, and he literally never played a minute for the Orange and Blue. Mihailo Petrovic was a bit of a disappointment, as he entered with high hopes but dealt with injuries to begin his time in Champaign.
Brandon Lee played in just 17 games during the 2025-26 season, averaging 1.8 points, 0.4 rebounds, and 0.2 assists per game. Ty Rodgers did not play in any games this season due to an injury, but was previously a starter for Underwood's squad.
Illinois basketball players retained
- David Mirkovic, power forward
- Tomislav Ivisic, center
- Zvonimir Ivisic, center
- Jake Davis, forward
- Andrej Stojakovic, guard
Underwood has done an absolutely incredible job of selling "retention" to his players and has earned his dividends, seeing five stars announce their return for another season with Illinois.
Illinois basketball players who have declared for 2026 NBA Draft
- Keaton Wagler, point guard
After a great Final Four run, the Illini had numerous players who were eyed by the NBA. Thankfully, only one player has declared for the NBA Draft, and that was superstar freshman Keaton Walger.
April 24 is the deadline to declare for the NBA Draft. Players will have until June 13 to pull their name out of the draft process.
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