Updated Illinois basketball transfer portal wish list includes a familiar name

Nate Santos - Dayton Flyers

Illinois adding some depth to the wing probably isn’t a bad idea. I love what we have in the frontcourt right now, and we have some nice backcourt pieces, but a player like Nate Santos would help depth tremendously.

Santos is a 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward who was looked over coming out of The Loomis Chaffe School in Connecticut. He was a three-star recruit who was ranked as the No. 231 player in the class of 2021. Santos had some good offers, and he ended up picking Pittsburgh as his landing spot.

The first two seasons of Santos’ career were spent with the Panthers. His game didn’t develop, as he played in 54 games and only started in six contests. His best season was his freshman campaign where he averaged 2.8 points and 1.9 rebounds per game.

Santos transferred out and landed with Dayton this past season. The kid really started to come into his own, as he averaged 11.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. He also took 3.7 three-point attempts each game and hit them at a clip of 41.8%.

After his junior year, Santos entered the transfer portal and is now looking for a new home. Illinois would be a great landing spot. Santos is from Geneva, Illinois, but he finished his high school career in Connecticut. So, there is the location factor.

I think Santos would be a great option out on the wing too. Having Ben Humrichous and Morez Johnson Jr. at the No. 4 and No. 5 spots, respectively, would give Illinois great size in the frontcourt, as both players are at least 6-foot-9. Santos could then come in and play the No. 3 spot and give Illinois a 6-foot-7 player who can hit 41.8% from three-point range. That would be incredible.