The Illinois basketball program isn’t just vying for one five-star recruit for the future.
Brad Underwood has been casting his recruiting line in the water, but he isn’t fishing for solid recruits. He is looking to land huge players who register in the five-star ranks.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Illinois offered a scholarship to Bentley Lusakueno. That recruitment has now taken another step.
According to Dushawn London of 247Sports, Lusakueno has booked four official visits to help determine where he is going to land. The four official visits are to Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Iowa, and Illinois.
Visit News: Bentley Lusakueno, the No. 6 overall prospect in the class of 2028, has scheduled official visits to Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Illinois and Iowa, source tells @247Sports
— Dushawn London (@DushawnLondon1) September 2, 2026
Story: https://t.co/oN1Cc7Nknu pic.twitter.com/s1hLDVfDB5
The first official visit will be to the Volunteers on September 5. Lusakueno will then head to Vanderbilt on September 12, Illinois on September 19, and Iowa on September 25.
Illinois landing Lusakueno would be big for the program. He is a 6-foot-10, 205-pound power forward out of IMG Academy in Florida. He is rated as a five-star recruit and ranked as the No. 6 player in the class of 2028. He is also the No. 3 power forward in the country and the No. 3 player coming out of Florida.
This isn’t the only Illinois official visit for the class of 2028. In addition to Lusakueno, Underwood also landed an official visit that will take place a couple of weeks later, when Brady Pettigrew will be in Champaign. He is a five-star and the No. 14 player in the country.
Don’t be surprised if Illinois pulls in a legendary class of 2027 when the smoke settles
As of right now, the Illini have the No. 5 class in 2027. We have two commitments – Quinton Kitt and Mason Martin – who are anchoring the group. This class could explode, though.
In the coming month or so, Illinois has three five-star recruits taking official visits for 2027. NaVorro Bowman Jr. visits on September 10, Moussa Kamissoko visits on September 18, and Darius Wabbington visits on October 23.
Those three five-star recruits are huge targets, but there is also a chance that both Pettigrew and Lusakueno reclassify from the class of 2028 to the class of 2027.
Pettigrew has been confirmed to be looking at the 2027 class. It would only make sense for Lusakueno to follow suit, as he is already taking official visits.
Illinois is poised to have a big year on the court during the 2026-27 season. After the campaign concludes, we are going to lose a ton of talent. The class of 2027 could be an instant injection of five-star talent. Look for the greatest recruiting class in program history to suit up for Illinois next season.
Add us as a preferred source on Google