Illinois basketball impresses top 2031 recruit Braylin Calhoun on unofficial visit

Braylin Calhoun is a top prospect in the class of 2031 who recently took an unofficial visit to Illinois basketball. The trip showed him the program’s facilities and gave Braylin a first-hand experience of the life and resources that Division I athletes have. Calhoun watched the Illini’s exhibition game vs Baylor and came away impressed with the Illini’s professional resources and culture. He sat with Armchair Illini to recap his unofficial visit to Champaign.

The physicality up close

After taking unofficial visits to Wisconsin, Michigan, and now Illinois, Calhoun got a first-hand look at just how physical the college basketball game is. After watching games on television growing up, Braylin shared that “I was a couple rows behind the basket and I feel like you can see a whole different level of physicality in person versus watching it on TV,” he said. “I don’t think people understand how physical it is. Then you combine the size and speed of these guys, it was a real eye-opener.”

Another eye-opener was the resources at Illinois; in fact, one of Braylin’s coolest parts of the trip was seeing the Noah shooting system and the Cryovault at the Ubben Basketball Facility. You don’t have to guess what you’re doing wrong on your shot; it just tells you,” he said. “I would literally use it every day for hours if I had one.”

Quentin Coleman

Braylin is a 6-foot-4, 18o pound guard. As he made the trip to Champaign, his circle told him to keep an eye on two players: Illinois’ Quentin Coleman and Baylor’s Dylan Mingo. When asked what stood out about the Illinois basketball star, Braylin shared, “He does everything, and I love to do everything,” Calhoun said. “Rebound, play defense, make good passes, make hustle plays. I try to impact more than just score the ball and think we’re similar in that way.”

A reminder of the work ahead

Braylin came away from his visits with motivation and energy to keep working on his game and improve. As his 8th grade season gets underway this winter, Braylin knows that he has so many aspects of his game to improve if he wants to be a sure-fire high major player.

“At the D1 level, you need way more to your game to be able to separate yourself.”

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