The NBA Draft enables players to live out their dream of making it to the next level.
This dream was realized by two Illini players back in June. Will Riley was one of those talented Illinois athletes who spent one season in Champaign before heading to The Association.
Riley didn’t hesitate to head to the next level. While he might not be fully equipped to take on the likes of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and others, Riley will get his chance to develop and become the best version of himself with the Washington Wizards.
There is plenty of room to grow for the young Canadian five-star. Riley wasn’t the No. 21 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft because of huge numbers. He only put up 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game in one season at Illinois. Riley’s shooting numbers won’t blow you away either, as he knocked down 43.2% from the field, 32.6% from three-point range, and 72.4% from the charity stripe.
The Wizards, among other teams, wanted Riley for his potential. At 6-foot-8, he can handle the ball well. He had flashes of greatness at Illinois, and he is super young, just 19 years old and won’t be 20 until February 2026.
Riley has a lot of talk about potential around him. The sky is the limit for this kid, and at the end of the day, he has an opportunity to do something not many Illinois basketball players have had a chance to do.
Be the face of an NBA franchise.
Will Riley can take over the Washington Wizards and never look back
Illinois has had plenty of NBA Draft picks over the years. Not many of those draft picks have been the face of a franchise.
Kasparas Jakucionis was drafted one pick before Riley, but he went to a Miami Heat team that has All-Star players in Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo. He won’t take the mantle from those two.
Last year, the Minnesota Timberwolves selected Terrence Shannon Jr. in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft. They already have Anthony Edwards, who has a chance to be the face of the league, let alone a franchise.
Meyers Leonard was selected No. 11 overall in 2012. He joined the Portland Trail Blazers alongside a future Hall of Famer, Damian Lillard, and was added to a team that had future Hall of Famer LaMarcus Aldridge already in tow.
There are only a few Illinois players who have been picked in the NBA Draft that I can point to and say they had the opportunity to be the face of a franchise.
Deron Williams in 2005 took full advantage of his opportunity. He joined a 26-win Utah Jazz squad and instantly became their best player, and elevated solid role players around him.
Getting picked No. 5 overall in 1990, Kendall Gill had a chance to take the reins in Charlotte. He wasn’t able to be the face of a franchise, despite having a really good NBA career.
And then you have the extremely unique situation of Nick Anderson. He was literally the first pick in the history of the Orlando Magic franchise. Anderson had a great opportunity to be the face of the Magic, and while he had a good career in Orlando, just two years later, they added some guy named Shaquille O’Neal.
Riley is now in line to be one of the rare Illinois players to have a chance to be the face of an NBA franchise. At this point, you might as well consider Washington a start-up team.
The Wizards have made the playoffs one time in seven years. They have only made it to the second round of the playoffs four times in the last 25 years as well.
Over the past two seasons, Washington has hit a new low. Going 15-67 during the 2023-24 season was barely clipped by the 18-64 campaign the Wizards had in 2024-25. Their combined 33 wins over the last two seasons would have finished 11th in the Eastern Conference during the 2024-25 campaign.
Washington doesn’t have a roster with superstar potential either. Leading scorer Jordan Poole was sent off to New Orleans. Second-leading scorer Kyle Kuzma is now in Milwaukee. Those two were much-needed subtractions for progress to be made with the Wizards.
Alex Sarr, the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, is a nice piece and showed a lot of potential last season, but not many are talking about him as a superstar waiting in the wings.
That leaves Riley staring down the runway of stardom. There isn’t much traffic on the runway, and air traffic control has greenlighted him for takeoff. It is not a matter of if Riley can take off; it is a matter of how high he can fly.
Washington’s offseason moves have been sneaky good for someone like Riley to blossom. They didn’t add superstar me-guys. The Wizards have surrounded Riley and Sarr with experienced veterans who know what it takes to win and are great locker room guys.
CJ McCollum came over in the Poole trade. He is a 12-year NBA veteran who has experience being a high-level role player next to a superstar. Khris Middleton, a 13-year veteran, was added to the roster in the Kuzma trade. He has won a title in the last half-decade, and he knows how to elevate a roster with his high-level role player talent.
Riley won’t have a lot of competition when it comes to being a star on the Wizards roster. As long as he listens and learns from the veterans on the squad, the future is bright for this budding star. The sky is the limit for Riley, and the wheels are up.