Illinois basketball commit Jeremiah Fears gets high praise from NBA big man

Jeremiah Fears continued to make it evident on Thursday night that Illinois basketball was getting a superstar in 2025.

The best high school teams in the country faced off across the ESPN platforms in the Chipotle Nationals on Thursday night, and future Illini guard, Jeremiah Fears, took the stage against the best team in the country.

Fears’ Arizona Compass Prep program was the No. 8 seed taking on powerhouse No. 1 seed Montverde Academy, which boasts not one, not two, but three McDonald’s All-Americans.

Compass Prep got out to a first quarter lead, 17-11. But Montverde’s strength showed the rest of the way out. The powerhouse program, which is 32-0, pulled ahead of Compass Prep and ended up winning the game, 64-49.

While this was a tough loss for Fears and his high school team, the future Illinois star did shine bright. He finished the game with 14 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Fears also got some high praise for a nearby NBA talent.

This tournament is being held in Brownsburg, Indiana, which is just 28 minutes away from Gainbridge Fieldhouse, where the Indiana Pacers play. Pacers’ star Myles Turner was in the house to watch the talented high school athletes compete, and he had some great words to say about Fears.

“I like Fears, I like him a lot,” said Turners on the broadcast, “He’s got that dog in him.”

Turner wasn’t finished throwing the shine on Fears. A few minutes later, more praise was given to the talented point guard.

“Fears, man, he’s very aggressive. I like his vision. At the end of the day, he’s getting downhill whenever he wants. Very dynamic player. He’s got that dog in him too, man.”

Illinois basketball is getting a game-changing point guard in Jeremiah Fears

The high praise from Turner is something special. He knows point guards, as he is currently playing with one of the best point guards the Pacers have ever seen in Tyrese Haliburton.

Fears is a special talent. He brings great energy to the court, and as Turner mentions, his vision is elite. I would argue the thing that impressed me most about Fears is his understanding of the defensive side of the court. He communicates and rotates. He understands when to switch and when to play help defense.

Illinois is getting a special player in Fears. He is anywhere from No. 16 to No. 53 among the recruiting sites in the class of 2025. It wouldn’t shock me if every recruiting site had him inside the top 30 by the time his senior year starts.