NCAA Basketball: 10 programs poised to land elite 2020 recruiting classes

Illinois Fighting Illini

Illinois has not exactly been a dominant force in the college basketball landscape as of late. They have missed the NCAA Tournament in six consecutive seasons and they have fallen almost completely out of the national spotlight. With that said, though, this upcoming campaign has plenty of promise. Now entering his third season with the program, head coach Brad Underwood has experts and fans alike excited about this roster. Many are expecting the Fighting Illini to shoot into the upper half of the Big Ten and compete for a Big Dance bid. Additionally, the coaching staff could land an incredible recruiting class to further potential successes.

Even though the Fighting Illini are yet to snag a 2020 commit, they seem to be in strong positioning with some of their targets. This includes the likes of elite in-state guards Adam Miller (No. 29) and DJ Steward (No. 27). These two are among the best in the entire country and Coach Underwood has plenty of interest. Furthermore, Illinois seems to be near the top of the list for top-notch big man Ryan Kalkbrenner (No. 77). The Fighting Illini have done a nice job making inroads with prospects from the “Land of Lincoln” and it will interesting to see if they are able to close on any of them. They currently hold both crystal ball predictions for Miller and all three for Kalkbrenner.

These are not, of course, the only prospects that Illinois is targeting. They also seem to be in the running for Andre Curbello (No. 59), Marcus Watson (No. 183), and D.J. Gordon (No. 126), among others. Illinois looks poised for a strong season on the court in 2019-20 compared to recent standards and using that momentum to land an elite-level recruiting class would keep the program trending in the right direction.