Illinois Basketball Makes Top 8 for Top 2024 Wing.

Illinois Basketball Makes Top 8 for Top 2024 Wing.

Illinois basketball currently has one commit in the Class of 2024. Morez Johnson committed to Illinois nearly two years ago and has continued to improve his stock. Johnson is the best player in the state of Illinois and continues to impress national scouts with his combination of length, athleticism, and motor. Morez has been doing great on the EYBL circuit as of late, and gives Illinois fans a great deal of excitement heading into 2024. Illinois has been rather quiet on the prep circuit in the class of 2024 otherwise. They have looked at Jason Jakstys as a long-term project at the center position, however have not been linked to many names.

Jaiden Glover, a top 75 2024 small forward from New Jersey recently named Illinois in his top 8. Glover named a top 8 of St Johns, Seton Hall, Creighton, Illinois, Villanova, Providence, Ohio State, and St Josephs.

The Player

Glover is a natural wing scorer. He has a solid mix of athleticism and off-the-bounce skills that could really benefit Illinois. Despite this, Illinois may be fighting an uphill battle. The New Jersey native is being heavily pursued by Big East programs such as St. Johns and Creighton. Typically, those kinds of schools do well with New Jersey natives and there is certainly a lot of pull to be playing close to home. Additionally, these type of wing players always seem to choose a Seton Hall or St. Johns.

‘24 6’6 jaiden glover shows continuous offensive growth (and as a primary scoring option) in transition, OTB, P&R + isolations. the middle game (mid-post, pull-up + runner) is appealing for a big guard. also averaged around 3apg in atlanta this past wknd @ UA finals pic.twitter.com/k4mcX9DYec

— Cory Underwood 🎓🤓🏀 x 🏀🧠📈 (@JoggersAndSatay) July 13, 2023

Glover actually plays for the Riverside Hawks. This is an AAU program ran by Kareem Memminger. Memminger was the mentor of Illini Great, Kofi Cockburn who may have a good word in for Illinois. Despite this, Orlando Antigua is no longer at the program hence it is questionable how that relationship is going.

The Fit

Illinois Basketball will not have Coleman Hawkins and Terrence Shannon to start the 2024 season. Without a doubt, Morez Johnson will be one of the focal points on the team that starts the 2024 season. In the first year of what will be a newer era for Illinois Basketball, Johnson projects as one of the most talented prospects on the team. If Ty Rodgers, Sencire Harris and Luke Goode all chose to return, Johnson will be a strong compliment to those veteran players.

Outside of that, Illinois needs a true scoring punch. Losing Hawkins, Shannon and the three grad transfers will be a significant loss in the scoring department. Landing a player like Jaiden Glover would certainly ease that burden.

Thank you for reading Armchair Illini. For more Illinois Athletics and Big Ten content from Armchair Illini, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.  For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email Alex Kyi at alexkyi13@gmail.com.