2. JP Pegues – Furman Paladins
I think there needs to be strong attention paid to the guard position heading into the 2024-25 season. Dante Maddox Jr. from Toledo would be a great option. I think JP Pegues would be another solid player for Illinois to snag.
Pegues was another overlooked player coming out of Hillsboro High School in Tennessee. He was rated as a three-star recruit and ranked as the No. 63 point guard in the class of 2021. He was also the No. 10 player coming out of Tennessee.
With very few scholarship opportunities, Pegues picked Furman as his landing spot. His career started slowly with the Paladins, but over the past two seasons, Pegues has started to blossom.
This past season, Pegues had his best season yet. He averaged 18.4 points, 4.8 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game. He is also a willing three-point shooter, as he took 7.6 three-point attempts per game and hit them at a clip of 36.2%.
According to Jamie Shaw of On3.com, quite a few teams have been in contact with Pegues about his services, and one of the programs that has inquired is Illinois.
Furman junior JP Pegues tells @On3sports he’s heard from these schools since entering the transfer portal…
— Jamie Shaw (@JamieShaw5) March 23, 2024
Auburn
South Carolina
Virginia
Illinois
Texas Tech
Kansas State
Missouri
Arkansas
LSU
Virginia Tech
Villanova
Xavierhttps://t.co/m26HkeZvG0 https://t.co/UqjBKUzThP pic.twitter.com/kNZUTyQspD
The theme of Illinois needing more guards continues with Pegues. He is someone who could come into the Illinois program and start from day one. Pegues is a playmaker, and that is what we need. He can shoot the ball well, but he is also a distributor who can create for others.
I think Pegues would be a great option at the starting No. 1 guard spot. Niccolo Moretti will get more minutes next season, but having him as the primary backup getting 15-20 minutes each game would be something to think about.