Illinois basketball: Brad Underwood discusses Toni Bilic signing

Last week, Illinois basketball signed Croatian forward Toni Bilic to its roster. Bilic is a 6-foot-8 forward who last played for Cedevita Junior in the Croatian league. He has the same agent as current Illini players Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic. Bilic is hoping to arrive in Champaign at the Semester break. He will not be playing in games during the 2025-2026 season and will largely focus on strength and conditioning work with coach Adam Fletcher and practices with the team.

Toni Bilic fits the mold of what Illinois basketball wants. He has positional size at 6 feet 8 inches and has the ability to play multiple spots on the floor. In a December 21st media appearance, head coach Brad Underwood spoke on what Bilic will bring to the Illini

Competitive drive and positional size

Underwood stated that Bilic is a “very skilled and downhill player”.  “Love his IQ and feel. Extremely competitive and players really hard. [Bilic] can get with Fletch and get in the weight room. He has tremendous perimeter skills. He has a lot of ability to make plays for others as well as himself.”

Despite this, Brad Underwood also added that he does not know when Bilic will officially join Illinois basketball. Given that Bilic is yet another international prospect, there is an expectation that this could take between multiple weeks and months.

Regardless, Toni Bilic is a prospect that the Illini are hoping to hone for next season and beyond. Whenever he arrives on campus, Underwood is certainly intrigued by the size and skill set that he will bring.

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