Illinois Basketball: Evaluating scenarios for Illini heading into 2020-21 season
By Tim Edmonds
There is a ton of roster situations that could still happen this offseason for Illinois Basketball. What is the best and worst-case scenarios?
Illinois Basketball was poised for its first March Madness run in close to a decade. That was before the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered the tournament and sports for the time being.
Led by emerging young stars in sophomore guard Quamdeem “Ayo” Dosunmu and Big Ten Freshman of the Year, center Kofi Cockburn the Illini secured 21 victories, their most since 2012-13 and were expected to grab a high seed in the NCAA Tournament before play halted. Now, after the duo’s announcements to enter the NBA Draft and not hire agents, the program and its potential to mount a legitimate NCAA title challenge are in limbo.
Announced on May 13, the NBA delayed the deadline for prospects to withdraw from the NBA Draft indefinitely — finally pegging August 3rd as the official deadline earlier this month. This late deadline, which was originally set for June 3rd, has left teams across the country waiting on pins and needles for their stars’ decisions to stay in the draft or return to school — and none more than head coach Brad Underwood and the Fighting Illini.
The duos’ importance to the program cannot be understated. In 2019-20 they combined for over 40 percent of the team’s points, as Dosunmu took major strides in his second season that saw him named to the All Big-Ten First Team by members of the media. All while Cockburn — a powerful seven-footer out of Kingston, Jamaica — made quick work of Big Ten defenses in his first season, averaging 13.8 points per game and snagging 8.8 rebounds a contest.
Simply put, if both stars were to return to Champaign this fall, Illinois and Underwood have a potential Final Four team on their hands.
With the decisions of both players weighing immensely on the future of the program and its chances at contention next season, here are three scenarios involving the duo and how this situation could playout for the Illini in 2020-21.