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Kylan Boswell: Strengths, Weaknesses of former Illini PG as NBA Combine Nears

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This past Friday saw the NBA Draft Combine invite list, 73 names long, released, and it included three Illinois Fighting Illini. Shooting guard and Jerry West Award wiiner Keaton Wagler, point guard/combo guard Kylan Boswell and small forward Andrej Stojakovic. Wagler is set to become a top 10, maybe even 5 overall pick. Stojakovic, who has a mid-to-late second round grade, … [Read more...] about Kylan Boswell: Strengths, Weaknesses of former Illini PG as NBA Combine Nears

Potential 2026-27 Illini Basketball Depth Chart; Consensus Top 5 Team

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As April turns to May, it appears that the Illinois Fighting Illini basketball roster is now set for 2026-27. And if that is indeed the case...it's a great place to be. After the flurry of roster decisions completed, we now have "The Great Retention." And when you're coming off a Final Four appearance, not to mention a regular season that was good enough to earn a #3 seed, it's … [Read more...] about Potential 2026-27 Illini Basketball Depth Chart; Consensus Top 5 Team

Illinois Basketball: Where the Roster Now Stands After Flurry of Decisions

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Wednesday brought a massive flurry of news for Illinois basketball. David Mirkovic, Jake Davis, Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic all confirmed that they are coming back for next season. Then on Thursday morning, we learned that Ty Rodgers is entering the transfer portal. So what does the current roster look like for 2026-27 Illinois basketball? This chart below is up to date, … [Read more...] about Illinois Basketball: Where the Roster Now Stands After Flurry of Decisions

Illini Land Stefan Vaaks, Fill Shooting Guard Void Left by Keaton Wagler Departure

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As soon as it opened, the men's basketball transfer portal had a flood of names in it. It was well over 1,000 names, and then quickly surpassed 2,000, just like that. And pretty soon, the transfer market was open, and recruiting efforts were already well underway. The Illinois Fighting Illini got a very sought after asset in Providence shooting guard Stefan Vaaks. He fills this … [Read more...] about Illini Land Stefan Vaaks, Fill Shooting Guard Void Left by Keaton Wagler Departure

Illini Basketball Transfer Talk: John Blackwell, Mihailo Petrovic, Toni Bilic

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March Madness is now over and the transfer portal is open, so you know what that means, Illini basketball fans- the silly season is here. It's time for the first 2026 edition of Illini basketball transfer talk, and we have items on three different players: John Blackwell, Mihailo Petrovic and Toni Bilic. By the way, and this is no surprise here, Keaton Wagler has officially … [Read more...] about Illini Basketball Transfer Talk: John Blackwell, Mihailo Petrovic, Toni Bilic

Mihailo Petrovic Exclusive: ‘Final Four was a beautiful experience’

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During Illinois' opening round NCAA Tournament rout over Penn, Philadelphia Eagles icon, soon-to-be brother-in-law of Taylor Swift and guy who appears in every third commercial that airs during a NFL game Jason Kelce tweeted about the Illini. “Who knew that Illinois had so many Serbians,” the ESPN talking posted on Twitter. Actually, Illinois only has one Serbian on the roster, … [Read more...] about Mihailo Petrovic Exclusive: ‘Final Four was a beautiful experience’

Andrej Stojakovic Making Own Name for Himself; He’s Much More than Peja’s Son

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As the Illinois Fighting Illini went on their deep run through March, certain story angles got beaten to death. We chronicled most of them in our Illinois Fighting Illini Bingo Card/Drinking Game with "Camera Shows Peja Stojakovic" near the top of the list. Right next to it is "Announcer Says Andrej Stojakovic Has a Completely Different Kind of Game tha His Ftaher." Ok, we get … [Read more...] about Andrej Stojakovic Making Own Name for Himself; He’s Much More than Peja’s Son

Exclusive with Keaton Wagler: “once you’re an Illini, you’re always an Illini”

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Keaton Wagler, what else is there left to say about this sensational freshman at this point? Is he coming back to Illinois next season? Well, probably not, as he projects out as a NBA Draft lottery pick. Most likely, he will be top 10, perhaps top 8 overall, should he declare. Another reporter asked him if he's determined his future yet, on Saturday night, after the Final … [Read more...] about Exclusive with Keaton Wagler: “once you’re an Illini, you’re always an Illini”

Illini Basketball Game Preview, Prediction: Final Four vs UConn

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When this Illini basketball team lost to UConn at Madison Square Garden on Black Friday, it was a game that didn't receive much hype. After all, it was an early tip-off on the day after Thanksgiving, on many people were more focused on food, shopping, holiday season activities and football than they were on basketball. And then the game itself lived down to the lack of hype, … [Read more...] about Illini Basketball Game Preview, Prediction: Final Four vs UConn