NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of Illinois of last decade

Each passing year, the sports world gives us unforgettable moments and memories and NCAA basketball has certainly contributed to that. It was only four seasons ago that mid-major Loyola-Chicago made an unthinkable run to the Final Four. Amazing runs, buzzer beaters, and key performances are just par for the course not just in March Madness but in the collegiate game.

We mention Loyola specifically because today our focus is on the state of Illinois. We’re continuing our series that looks at the best college basketball players of the last decade from each state, with the Land of Lincoln our current focus. This isn’t a focus piece on Loyola or the Illini or the other programs in the state, specifically on players from the state.

Chicago has produced an enormous amount of basketball talent over the years, and if we were including more than just the last decade this list would be even more impressive. Still, in just ten seasons there are some pretty incredible names on today’s list, and these are certainly players from more than just Chicago and the Chicago area suburbs. Among the United States, Illinois has certainly produced some of the finest collegiate talent in the basketball world, especially when you compare to our recent pieces on states like Hawaii and Idaho.

Remember that only ten college athletes are listed today and we guarantee that there are dozens more who are worthy of mention. It’s also important to remember that this piece looks at players whose hometowns are from Illinois, not necessarily their birthplace or high school attended. Anyways, there are some very impressive names on this list and we’re just going to get right into them.