Illinois Basketball loses out on 2025 recruit to UConn

Illinois Basketball lost out on 2025 PG Jacob Furphy, a top recruit from Australia. Furphy was on the Illini campus in early September, however, decided to commit to the National Champions of the past two years, the Uconn Huskies. Per our sources, UConn head coach Dan Hurley made a major push for Jacob Furphy and was crucial in landing the talented guard. When the back-to-back national champs want you, it is very difficult to turn that down. Illinois Basketball did make a strong impression on Furphy and did well on their visit, however, the UConn pitch was too much to overcome.

Illinois Basketball will be fine as they have two guard commitments on board in Brandon Lee and Keaton Wagler. Furphy would have certainly been a nice addition to the class as he is more of a true playmaker. Lee and Wagler are top 150 prospects who specialize in shooting and scoring.

NEWS: Australian 6-6 guard Jacob Furphy has committed to UConn, he tells @On3Recruits. pic.twitter.com/ikKfZPFEoB

— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) October 30, 2024

On to the next

Illinois Basketball went big fish hunting. Anytime you have to recruit a prospect alongside the national champs, it will be difficult. However, the Illini will now likely focus their efforts on the front court. They have recently hosted stretch forward, Chamberlain Burgess, and recently made the top six of Spencer Ahrens. Furphy would have been a nice replacement for Kylan Boswell or Kasparas Jakucionis‘ role should either of them enter the 2025 NBA Draft. The Illini will need a ballhandler if Boswell or Jakucionis is not on the 2025 roster. Will they look into the prep recruits or the transfer portal?

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