No. 4 Forward
Starter: Amani Hansberry (SO)
The recent addition of Tre White and the departure of Jase Butler doesn’t affect the frontcourt in my opinion. I still believe Illinois needs to ride into next season with Amani Hansberry starting. He is entering his sophomore season, and I think Brad Underwood needs to rely more on Hansberry. I have him starting at the No. 4 spot on the court.
Hansberry is a unique player. He is a bit undersized for the No. 5 spot, and he is bigger than most forwards on the court. He is built like a power forward but can shoot from three-point range. We especially saw that toward the end of the UConn game when he was raining down three-pointers. Hansberry averaged 2.4 points and 2.1 rebounds in 7.5 minutes per game last season. I think we get at least 20 minutes each night out of him in 2024-25, and look for Hansberry to blossom into an All-Big Ten type of player.
Backup: Jake Davis (SO)
Illinois’ second unit needed some help in the scoring department. Really, the entire roster needed a boost in scoring, but with the addition of Jake Davis, Illinois won’t lose anything when we go to the bench.
I have Davis as the primary backup to Hansberry at the No. 4 spot. Honestly, Davis is likely to come in at the No. 3 or No. 4 spots throughout the game. With his 6-foot-6 size, he can play multiple roles and his ability to knock down shots is eye-popping. Davis averaged 9.0 points per game as a freshman, but what stands out is his 4.7 three-point attempts per game and hitting them at a clip of 38.7%. I have Davis as the primary backup, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see him eventually starting.