The Illinois basketball team has done some great work on and off the court the last few seasons.
Brad Underwood has led the Illini to at least the Elite Eight in two out of the last three seasons. That is something that not many coaches can say across the country.
A big reason for the success of Illinois basketball is how well we have recruited. This includes transfer portal recruitments and an area that has gotten exponentially stronger: European recruiting.
On Monday, Front Office Sports released a clip of an interview with Misko Raznatovic. He is the agent for numerous players, such as NBA star Nikola Jokic. He also represents the Illinois European players who have helped us reach great heights.
.@MiskoRaznatovic—Nikola Jokic's agent and the man behind Illinois’s Balkan Five—shares why European basketball players are drawn to the NCAA. pic.twitter.com/hrqZ9OynZ7
— Front Office Sports News (@FOS_News_) April 13, 2026
“I have become a big fan of college basketball,” Raznatovic said, “not only because of NIL, but what they see, it reminds me really for European basketball because people really love their teams.”
Raznatovic continues explaining the passion of college fans, and even drops Illinois as a golden example.
“They’re upset after the loss. They are very happy, do crazy celebrations after they win. What was obviously in Champaign,” said Raznatovic, “here what they saw, let’s say in Indianapolis for all four teams, especially Illinois wherever you go on the street, everything is orange.”
Illinois basketball leaned heavily on the talent of European players the last couple of seasons
While the success of the 2025-26 campaign is on the mind of many, Illinois really started the European surge last season.
Kasparas Jakucionis was the first big domino. His great freshman campaign put him in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft.
This season, you saw a great year from David Mirkovic. He ranked in the top three in points, rebounds, and assists for the Illini. I would also argue that, if he sticks around for another year, Mirkovic is likely to be one of the favorites to win the John R. Wooden Award for the best player in college basketball.
Three out of the top six scorers on the Illinois basketball team last season came from overseas. I don’t expect this to let up anytime soon, either. Underwood has the Illini recruiting chugging along like a well-oiled machine. Look for more success from the Euro market, as Illinois has shown that Champaign can be the stepping stone to the NBA.