We’re officially entering the “dog days” of the college basketball offseason: Summer. The transfer portal dust has (mostly) settled, the deadline to withdraw from the 2025 NBA Draft is approaching and players across the country will begin to report to campus in the next couple of weeks.
In other words, it’s time to discuss who has had the best offseason, this time, in the Big Ten.
While plenty of teams across the Big Ten can make a case for having the best offseason in the conference, it’s hard to ignore the success of Brad Underwood & Co. this spring. Check out three reasons why the Illinois Fighting Illini has had the best offseason in the Big Ten Conference.
Illini makes a European splash
Brad Underwood and staff are no strangers to adding European talent to their roster thanks to deep-rooted international connections from Illini assistants Geoff Alexander and Orlando Antigua.
While The “international trend” has begun to pick up steam over the past couple of years after the implementation of NIL, the Illini have grown accustomed to dabbling into the European market since the arrival of Underwood in 2017. And this season will be no different.
Incoming to Champaign include Mihailo Petrovic and David Mirkovic. Petrovic, a 22-year-old from Europe's Adriatic League, is a silky-smooth, playmaking point guard who will look to fill the void of Kasparas Jakucionis. He will demand an on-ball role, which is exactly what Underwood was looking for this offseason. The crafty guard has blossomed into a star overseas and can push the pace in transition -- something that Illinois was looking to improve on this offseason.
Meanwhile, David Mirkovic is a 6-foot-9, 250-pound skilled power forward who can stretch the floor at the four. He will slot into the frontcourt alongside the Ivisic brothers. He may be a tad undersized but brings a unique offense skillset to the table. He’s got a nice, advanced-looking jump shot off of spot-up situations but is also capable of finding the gaps off pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop coverage. Underwood has stressed positionless basketball. And Mirkovic fits that bill.
Quality over Quantity
The motto for Illinois’ transfer portal additions is quite simple: quality over quantity. The Illini have added only two transfers, yet rank fourth in the country in average transfer quality, according to Evan Miya.
The first transfer is California transfer Andrej Stojakovic, who averaged nearly 18 PPG and 4.7 RPG for the Bears last season. Stojakovic -- a former four-star recruit who started his career at Stanford -- was among the top players in the transfer portal and expects to immediately slot into the starting five, likely at the small forward position.
The Illini also added a familiar face: Zvonimir Ivišić, Tomlislav’s twin brother. The seven-footer averaged 8.5 PPG and 4.3 RPG at Arkansas last season. While Zvonimir saw inconsistent playing time in Fayetteville last season thanks to defensive and foul issues, he showed flashes of what his game can be, including a 27-point outing versus Alabama followed by a 25-point outing against LSU. He’s a steady shot-blocker -- which can help cover up some defensive miscues -- and the hope is, that he can be interchangeable alongside Tomislav in the frontcourt.
Returning experience
Sometimes, the best gets are the ones you already have. That’s the case for the Fighting Illini. Illinois returns starting SG Kylan Boswell, who averaged 12.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG and 3.8 APG last season. While Bosswell’s three-point shooting took a dip last season, his overall efficiency increased. Boswell had a strong finish to the season and is among the top on-ball defenders in the Big Ten.
In addition to Boswell, Illinois also returns Ben Humcrichous, who averaged 7.6 PPG last season. While Humcrichous faced some ups and downs along the way last season, Underwood’s confidence in the three-point sharpshooter never wavered. Remember, Humcrichous has worked his way up from the NAIA ranks to the Big Ten. It wasn’t going to always be smooth sailing. But with a year in the Big Ten under his belt, an improvement from last season is the expectation in Champaign.
And we must not forget perhaps the most crucial retention: Ty Rodgers. Rodgers, who started in all 38 games from the Elite Eight team two years ago, redshirted last season. At the time, it felt like a sure-fire way of saying “One is entering the transfer portal in the offseason.” But that didn’t happen. Rodgers will return and immediately inject a unique style of physicality and toughness in the backcourt that not many guards in college basketball have. At 6-foot-6, Rodgers isn’t a three-point threat. But he’s a relentless attacker. He can rebound. And he brings the toughness/leadership DNA that cannot be replaced from the transfer portal.