No. 3 Wing
Starter: Tre White (SR)
This past offseason wasn’t just about building the Illinois basketball team for the 2024-25 campaign. It was about developing a great base for the next couple of seasons. While Kylan Boswell was a great get for the program, I think Tre White will be a major impact player as well.
White has spent two seasons in college thus far, one with USC and last season with Louisville. The former four-star recruit has now found a home in Champaign, and he will bring some quality slashing talent to the program. White can get the ball on the wing and create his own shot. He can also slash to the basket to create easy buckets around the rim. Look for White to play a similar role to that of Quincy Guerrier.
Backup: Jake Davis (JR)
Illinois brought in some serious shooting this past offseason. A player who we are going to use greatly and rely on to give us points off the bench is Jake Davis.
The Mercer transfer was another big get for Brad Underwood this past offseason. He should suit up for the Illini this upcoming season after knocking down 38.7% of his three-pointers with the Bears as a freshman. I think the biggest jump for Davis will be from his sophomore to junior season. That is when I could see Illinois developing him the most. Davis will be big for the program in 2025-26. I have him as one of the first off the bench as the primary backup at the No. 3 spot.