Illinois basketball just put the discussion of Chicago’s Big Ten team to bed

With the Illinois basketball team entering the Final Four, there has been a lot of hype around the program.

The basketball program has always carried a ton of weight for the Illini, and they have been the standard when it comes to sports in the state of Illinois. One thing that has always been a topic of discussion is Chicago’s Big Ten team.

That purple team from up north likes to claim themselves as Chicago’s Big Ten team. While they are a stone's throw away from Chicago in Evanston, can you really claim Chicago if you are bad at everything? I mean, don’t you have to give a city a reason to cheer for you? It is one of those situations, if a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a noise?

Here is the thing: maybe the decision of being Chicago’s Big Ten team isn’t up to the fans. Maybe it is up to the city itself. Well, on Thursday night, the city spoke.

In a social media post, the Skydeck Chicago sent out a nice message with a picture of the Sears Tower (Willis Tower). The twin antennas on top of the tower are lit up in orange and blue to cheer on Illinois in the Final Four.

So, one of the most recognized buildings in the world, in one of the biggest cities in the world, is lighting their night sky up with Illini orange and blue. I think that right there speaks for itself. There is only one Big Ten team that can claim Chicago, and that is the team that is two wins away from a national championship.

Illinois basketball is ready to finally break through the national championship barrier

It is fun to see the entire state embracing Illinois. We are by far the program that is carrying the state of Illinois when it comes to national basketball relevance.

The Illini are about to enter their sixth Final Four appearance in program history. That is an impressive number. The fact that we haven’t been able to get at least one title is pretty incredible in itself.

This could be the year, though. I don’t think anyone would argue that this Illinois team could go head-to-head with any in the past. That 2005 team was pretty special. The 1989 Flyin’ Illini could hold their own. But the 2026 squad has something different about them. The depth, the talent, the versatility. This is a golden opportunity for the program to do something that has never been done. We could legitimately be days away from hoisting the national championship trophy.