Illinois HS Basketball News: Issue 24
Week Of November 29, 2020
Finally, we had a slow week in the will-we, won’t we of the high school season. Of course, we all wish we were watching, coaching or playing in holiday tournaments this week.
On the true high school front, things were slow, though commitments continued to come through and news of a few more out-of-state transfers trickled in. But there was plenty of news from former Illinois high school stars, as the D1 college season tipped off, and the NBA offseason was in full swing.
Reminder: To send me stories or recruiting news, find me on Twitter or email rudnik.jakub@gmail.com. And if you like the newsletter, please share with others who would like it!
Let’s get to basketball!
Commitments
Downers Grove North 2021 PF Jack Mielke announced his commitment to D2 Southern Indiana.
Hillcrest 2021 guard Tahlor Sutton announced her commitment to D2 Miles College in Alabama.
Loyola Academy 2021 forward Isabella Ogliore announced her commitment to D3 DePauw (Indiana). Bob Narang wrote about her commitment for the Pioneer Press.
Niles North 2021 guard Liam Graham announced his commitment to D3 Lawrence University (Wisconsin).
Fenwick 2021 guard Dane Brazil announced his commitment to D3 Saint Mary’s Minnesota.
Justina Hernandez didn’t play basketball until sixth grade. Now she’s committed to play D1 at UW-Milwaukee. John Lemon wrote about Hernandez — who played two years for Bartlett, one for Nazareth and is set to play senior year at Glenbard North — for the Daily Herald.
List of 2021 girls college commitments and 2021 boys college commitments.
Transfer News
Caleb Burton, a 2022 point guard, has transferred from O'Fallon to Confluence Academy in St. Louis.
Mike Davis Jr., a 2023 point guard, transferred from Morgan Park to Copley in Ohio.
Brimfield 2022 guard Camden Kasel transferred out of state to play in New London, Iowa.
Former Kankakee 2022 guard AJ Storr is leaving Bishop Gorman for AZ Compass Prep due to a lack of high school season in Las Vegas.
Ra'Shamiya Webb, who transferred from Normal West to Brownsburg in Indiana, hit a game-winner over the weekend:
List of 40 Illinois high school basketball players to transfer out of state.
Boys Recruiting News
Whitney Young 2022 forward AJ Casey received an offer from Maryland. He spoke to 247 about the offer.
Former Kankakee 2022 guard AJ Storr received an offer from Illinois. PrepHoops Illinois’ Scott Burgess talked to Storr about his move to the west coast and how quickly his recruiting picked up. Zain Bando wrote about the Illini’s offer for Writing Illini.
Former Hinsdale Central 2023 forward Matas Buzelis (Brewster Academy transfer) received an offer from Syracuse. Previously held offers from Illinois and Wake Forest.
Wheeling 2021 SG Jaden Terrell received an offer from D2 Davenport (Michigan).
Loyola Academy 2021 guard Scottie Dean received an offer from D3 St. Norbert (Wisconsin).
For the Sun-Times, Joe Henricksen has a fun two-part story on the biggest recruiting steals to come out of Illinois. Part One and Part Two.
Girls Recruiting News
Oak Forest 2023 guard Janae Kent received an offer from St. Louis.
Bollingbrook 2022 PG Kennedi Perkins received an offer from Northwestern.
Bishop McNamara 2021 center Claudia Dolliger received an offer from D2 Chadron State (Nebraska).
Lincoln-Way East 2021 PG Samara Swire received an offer from NAIA Mount Mercy (Iowa).
Schlarman 2021 guard McKaylee Allen received an offer from juco Wabash Valley
“‘It’s been really slow’: Batavia’s Tessa Towers ramps up focus and work ethic as recruiting slows down during coronavirus pandemic,” via Rick Armstrong of the Aurora Beacon-News.
Coaching Stories and News
Thornwood boys head coach Paul Slavich is stepping down, according to South Suburban Hoops.
Rich Township girls head coach Jonnie Bass is stepping down, according to South Suburban Hoops.
COVID-19 Updates and News
“As 2020 nears close, private sports industry leaders continue to search for a path forward.” Jon Kerr reports for his newsletter on a less-talked-about group affected by the closure of athletics due to the pandemic.
Illinois Players in the Pros
Rockford Auburn graduate Fred VanVleet re-signed with the Toronto Raptors for four years and $85 million.
Perspectives graduate Anthony Davis has yet to re-sign with the Lakers, though it appears to be a done deal. There are rumors that he is weighing the structure of the contract based on the possibility of a Giannis Antetokounmpo signing in the future.
JaVale McGee, who played his senior season at Hales Franciscan, was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Former Curie and Marshall player Alfonzo McKinnie returns to the Lakers in the deal.
Whitney Young graduate Jahlil Okafor signed a two-year deal with the Detroit Pistons.
Robinson graduate Meyers Leonard re-signed with the Miami Heat for two years and $20 million.
Proviso East graduate Sterling Brown signed a one-year, veteran’s minimum deal with the Houston Rockets.
Proviso East graduate Jevon Carter re-signed with the Phoenix Suns for a three-year deal.
Benet graduate Frank Kaminsky signed a one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings after playing last season with the Suns.
Notre Dame College Prep graduate Matt Mooney signed a two-way deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Curie graduate Cliff Alexander signed a contract to play in South Korea.
Illinois Players in College
21 freshman boys have already made their D1 debuts. I created list of their performances, and Adam Miller, DJ Steward and Connor Kochera had by far the best debuts.
Morgan Park graduate and Peoria native Adam Miller was the media’s pick for Big Ten freshman of the year, Scott Richey of the News-Gazette writes.
Matt Daniels of the News-Gazette wrote about early college performances for local boys players from Fisher, Champaign Central, Centennial, Urbana and Mahomet-Seymour.
Graduates from New Trier and Nazareth reflect on the Ivy League sitting out the college basketball season. Steve Reaven has a good story for the Pioneer Press.
Luke Yaklich, a LaSalle-Peru graduate and boys and girls coach (as well as boys coach at Joliet West and Sterling), won his college head coaching debut for UIC.
Whitney Young graduate Javon Freeman-Liberty was granted immediate eligibility after transferring from Valparaiso to DePaul.
“Johnsburg grad Zach Toussaint bulks up ahead of sophomore season at West Texas A&M,” via Barry Bottino for the Northwest Herald.
Other Stories and News
“Cobden's Noah Franklin has sights set on scoring record,” writes Braden Fogal for The Southern.
Aurora Christian graduate Jeremy Henderson, who played college ball at Florida A&M, is launching a shooting sleeve that tracks form and gives athletes feedback. Rick Armstrong has the story for the Aurora Beacon-News.
