Andrej Stojakovic withdraws from 2026 NBA Draft to return to Illinois

Andrej Stojakovic is officially coming back to Illinois for the 2026-2027 season. Stojakovic announced his decision on social media to withdraw from the 2026 NBA Draft.

After testing the NBA Draft waters and gathering feedback at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, Andrej Stojakovic. In doing so, Illinois likely solidified itself as a preseason top-five team and legitimate national title contender once again.

The decision ultimately made sense for both sides.

Stojakovic proved last season that he already possesses NBA-level tools. The 6-foot-7 wing averaged 17.9 points and 6.1 rebounds while blossoming into one of the Big Ten’s best downhill scorers, shooting 58.3 percent on two-point attempts. He also emerged as one of Illinois’ most versatile defenders and took major strides as a rebounder and secondary playmaker during the Illini’s Final Four run.

Your heart always leads you back to Illinois. pic.twitter.com/NKpRVaFODg

— Illinois Men’s Basketball (@IlliniMBB) May 27, 2026

What Stojakovic needs to do as he returns to college

After shooting just 24.4 percent from three last season, evaluators wanted to see more perimeter consistency from Stojakovic despite his strong free-throw shooting and polished midrange game. Teams reportedly loved his positional size, athletic testing, defensive versatility, and ability to create offense downhill. However, the outside shot remained the swing skill that could determine whether he was selected in the second round or played his way toward the first-round conversation in 2027.

And there may not be a better place for him to develop that part of his game than Illinois.

With Tomislav Ivisic, David Mirkovic, Stefan Vaaks, and freshman Quentin Coleman surrounding him, Stojakovic won’t have to carry the whole offensive burden. Another offseason in Brad Underwood’s system and with strength coach Adam Fletcher could elevate him even further.

For Illinois, the biggest takeaway is simple: its star wing is back — and so are championship expectations.

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