Illinois Basketball Secures Official Visit from 5-Star Center Darius Wabbington

Brad Underwood and his staff aren’t wasting any time trying to build on Illinois’ Final Four run from last season. The Illinois basketball head coach has made a renewed push toward the top of the high school recruiting rankings, and that work is starting to show up on Illinois’ recruiting calendar. After landing an official visit from five-star 2028 guard Brady Pettigrew last week, Illinois has now added another major name to the schedule.

Five-star center Darius Wabbington is set to take an official visit to Champaign on October 23rd, according to 247Sports’ Brandon Jenkins. 

Wabbington is a 6-foot-11, 245-pound center from Sunnyslope High School in Phoenix and is a consensus five-star prospect in the 2027 class, ranked as high as No. 15 nationally. He is coming off a strong junior season in which he averaged 17.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists.

What makes Wabbington such an intriguing prospect is that he isn’t simply a big body who lives around the basket. He has the size and physicality to battle inside, but his skill level gives him a much higher ceiling. He can score around the rim, rebound at a high level, and make plays for others from the frontcourt. His production also carried over to the adidas 3SSB circuit with Compton Magic, where he averaged 16.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.

A skilled Big man with high-level experience

Wabbington also has experience playing against some of the best young talent in the world. He represented Team USA at the FIBA U18 AmeriCup alongside Illinois freshman Quentin Coleman. While there, Wabbington averaged 9.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists during the tournament.

The timing of his Illinois visit could be interesting, too. If David Mirkovic is back on the court by late October following his foot injury, Wabbington could get an up-close look at one of the most talented frontcourt players on Illinois’ roster. Mirkovic isn’t a traditional center, but his size, skill and ability to play through contact make him a pretty good example of the type of frontcourt versatility Underwood prefers.

Illinois basketball will have plenty of competition. Wabbington has official visits lined up with Arizona, Indiana, Louisville, North Carolina, Texas and Washington.

But the fact that Illinois is even in this group, while simultaneously bringing in Pettigrew, NaVorro Bowman Jr. and other elite prospects, says plenty about where Underwood has taken the program.

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