The Illinois basketball program was hot and heavy for John Blackwell at one time, but that saga is now over, as he has exited the transfer portal.
Blackwell, a three-star recruit out of high school, has been on the top of Illini fans' minds throughout this transfer portal cycle. He has been the No.1 shooting guard and the No. 3 overall prospect in the transfer portal, elevating his rating to five stars with 247Sports.
The former Wisconsin Badger was doing his due diligence to find himself a new home, with Brad Underwood and the Illini being one of the final six schools on his list. On Tuesday, Blackwell finally made his decision to head east to join Jon Scheyer and the Duke Blue Devils.
Breaking: Wisconsin transfer John Blackwell has committed to Duke, he told @jeffborzello.
— ESPN (@espn) April 21, 2026
Blackwell, who averaged 19.1 points and earned third-team All-Big Ten honors, was one of the best guards to enter the portal this spring. pic.twitter.com/Grr10KIc3l
Blackwell was an All-Big Ten honorable mention in 2025. In 34 games played for head coach Greg Gard and the Badgers, Blackwell was able to average 19.1 points and 5.1 rebounds on 43% shooting from the field.
It was a rather eventful process for the Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, product, as Blackwell compiled an extensive list of transfer possibilities, leading to a final six that included Illinois, UCLA, and the aforementioned Duke Blue Devils.
John Blackwell signing with the Blue Devils will be a major blessing for Illinois basketball in 2026-27
It has been a wild ride for the Illinois basketball team, with fans having to endure almost a month of the top transfer portal recruit pondering his next steps for the fall. They have been patiently waiting for weeks, constantly refreshing their social media with the hope of seeing some news.
Blackwell was supposed to be the "big fish" that everyone had been talking about, but instead ended up becoming the one that got away. But thankfully, it may have been for the better, with Illinois retaining five of their key starters from last year's Final Four team.
They’re back.
— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) April 17, 2026
Vratili su se.
Επιστρέφουνε. pic.twitter.com/26YLfDaZro
It was a masterclass in retention by Underwood and his staff, as they were able to bring back over half of their offense from a year ago. They will have the ability to score from any spot on the floor, to the point where someone averaging 20 points per game would just be a luxury.
Granted, Illinois' depth chart has been severely depleted of point guards, with four members of last year's team departing for various reasons. But at this point in the process, the amount of resources that Illinois would have to give up to acquire Blackwell wouldn't have equaled the gain.
Add us as a preferred source on Google