Projected Illinois basketball lineup after Niccolo Moretti enters the transfer portal

Illinois basketball had another transfer portal departure on Monday, which now leaves just two holdovers from the Elite 8 squad.

I have never seen anything like this offseason. Only having two Illini players returning is insane, but Brad Underwood is taking the punches and fighting back.

Illinois has landed four transfer portal players thus far, and more are on the way. Does the most recent loss of Niccolo Moretti hurt? sure, but I have faith that Underwood will put together a solid group for next season.

The Moretti transfer news does adjust the lineup a bit, though.

Here is the projected Illinois basketball lineup after Niccolo Moretti enters the transfer portal

No. 1 Guard

Starter: Kylan Boswell (JR)

I think at this point in the game, I still have Kylan Boswell starting at the No. 1 spot for the Illinois basketball team. I contemplated moving him to the No. 2 spot and Ty Rodgers remaining the starting point guard, but Boswell is just too good to take the ball out of his hands.

Bowell enters the Illinois program from Arizona where he put up 9.6 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game last season. He does give the Illini some flexibility, though. When more transfer portal players come to Illinois, Brad Underwood can move Boswell around in the backcourt. He works well off the ball, but he is best when the ball is in his hands. Regardless, I think Boswell’s presence is going to be huge for the Illinois basketball program.

Backup: Transfer Portal

Illinois needs to use one of the five remaining scholarships for a backup point guard. With Niccolo Moretti now out of the picture, the Illini are extremely thin in the backcourt.

The player I am eyeing is Dai Dai Ames. He is a Kansas State transfer who is from Chicago. If Ames did come to Illinois, I would likely move Boswell to the No. 2 guard spot and have Ames start at the No. 1 spot.