30 thoughts is an idea I’m stealing from Elliote Friedman. Props if you know who that is. He is a hockey writer for Sportsnet Canada and does a weekly article called 30 thoughts. In the article, he shares 30 thoughts on the NHL from that week. I will attempt to share 30 of my own thoughts on Illinois, the B1G, and maybe a little of the NCAA. I hope you enjoy it.
1. Friday, November 13th is closely approaching. This is the day the Illini travel to Springfield to play their first official game of the season against North Florida. That opponent is ranked better than the likes of Penn State, Virginia Tech, Washington, Nebraska, St. Johns, Boston College, Auburn, and Missouri. North Florida will be a tough task right out of the gate. In fact, Illinois’ first four opponents are all ranked better than the teams mentioned above. There will not be multiple games to start the season against the Sisters of the Poor to get the freshmen and transfers adjusted and settled in. With the many newcomers, injuries, and tough start of the schedule, it truly was a great year for the Europe trip. We will see if the trip paid off early in November as there will be no cake walks in the first four games.
2. Last year, Illinois shot 44.4% from two point land. That was good for 300th in college basketball. This is something that needs to be improved upon this season to be a successful team. Not a single player on the team last year shot over 50% from inside the arc. The highest percentage was Rayvonte Rice at .491, but he now plays in Europe. Leron Black (.486), Malcolm Hill (.467), Nnanna Egwu (.457), and Mav Morgan (.455) round out the top five last year in 2p%. For comparison, Alabama - a fellow NIT team - had six of their nine players shoot over 50% from two. Illinois can’t be successful if they can’t convert the easy buckets inside. Kendrick Nunn was second on the team last year with 177 two point attempts, and he only converted 77 of those (.435). Will Thorne, Finke, and the rest of the newcomers be enough to improve Illinois’ percentages? Mike Thorne (.536 last year) will provide an inside presence, but will it be enough?
3. Time for some positive stats. Illinois had the best free throw percentage in the nation last year shooting just under 80%. I wish I could end this thought here, but there is a catch to this positive stat. Illinois never went to the line. Illinois was ranked 315 out of 351 teams in free throw rate. For every 100 field goal attempts, Illinois shot 31.2 free throws. With only two B1G teams (Maryland and Purdue) ranked in the top 150 in Free Throw rate last year, maybe it’s a sign that the Big Ten refs don’t like to call fouls. Either way, if Illinois is going to shoot that well from the line again this year, then they need to find a way to get to the freebies more often. Some eye doctor appointments for referees might do the trick as well.
4. Enough with numbers, let’s talk letters such as “C”. It is a letter stitched on the NHL jersey of each team’s captain. Malcolm Hill has to wear the “C” this year. He is the face of the program. Malcolm is young for his age as he skipped the 2nd grade. In October of 2015, he left his teenage years behind him and said hello to age 20. It’s time for him to step up and be the leader on this team. In the NHL, the letter “A” goes to two assistant captains. I guess Kendrick Nunn gets one by default. He appears to be the second guy behind Malcolm. The other “A” goes to Tracy Abrams. He might not be able to play, but this is his 5th year at Illinois. He should understand the culture and help sculpt the newcomers into the players they need to be. I consider Tracy the coach off the court. He is a veteran, the old guy on the team, the teacher, the mentor. He might be missing his second consecutive year, but he is still a very important piece of this team. In the future, Jalen Coleman-Lands could be the next player to wear the “C” on his jersey.
5. The Illinois Basketball players started their own twitter account. The username is @illini_triller. They mostly post videos where they lip sync rap songs, but the videos are pretty funny and one never knows what they might post next.
6. It’s crazy how unlucky Illinois basketball is. Over the summer, this season appeared to be the one to get Illinois back to the dance and back to relevancy. Then Darius Paul happens. Tracy Abrams happens. Jalen Coleman-Lands happens. Leron Black happens. Kendrick Nunn happens. That’s 5 of the top 7 to 8 players that are now inured or, in Paul’s case, off the team. Michigan was a good team that was decimated by injuries last season. Hopefully Illinois can get players healthy and acclimated to each other quickly this year.
7. Speaking of Michigan, John Beilein went 16-16 and 8-10 in the Big Ten last year. John is a good coach who lost players like Caris Levert and Derrick Walton Jr. to injuries. Those injuries resulted in a poor season. That season will be swept under the rug. The excuse will be injuries and the season will be forgotten. No blame lies on Beilein, he can’t control injuries. John Beilein has a track record of success, John Groce doesn’t. Even though a coach like John Beilein might not be able to save Illinois’ season, John Groce will be expected to. John Groce will be evaluated in a season where true evaluation is impossible. I’m not saying Groce is a good or bad coach. I’m only stating that I won’t be able to truly evaluate if he is a good or bad coach this season with everyone injured.
8. Wow, is it nice to see Dee Brown around the program again. He is the shining light in the murkiness that is Illinois Athletics. His smile and positivity always brightens my day. We are lucky to have such a great person represent the Orange and Blue. Hopefully, Dee also helps land some recruits as well.
9. The class of 2017 is like Christmas. Each recruit is like a present. As fans, you know you are getting a bunch of presents this year and as Tom Petty says “the waiting is the hardest part”. Class of 2016 was like a bad birthday where you received only one present. It was a TV. You really needed a TV, but it wasn’t the big flat screen with all the bells and whistles you wanted. Instead it was Te’Jon Lucas, a TV that gets the job done, but doesn’t wow you yet. Hopefully, Illinois can get some Christmas present early this year. It will depend if Illinois is on the good or bad list. Time will tell.
10. Speaking of recruiting, Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan was recently cleared to play by the NCAA. Twitter was really heated about this one. Purdue and college basketball fans were quick to blame the NCAA for taking too long to resolve Swanigan’s eligibility. I don’t know who is to blame in this instance; however, it isn’t always the NCAA’s fault. In some cases the NCAA gets leads about a player such as John Doe. The NCAA has to investigate to make sure John Doe is eligible to play. It could be as simple as needing some paperwork to examine, before they can clear the player. The NCAA asks John Doe’s guardian/school for some paperwork needed to make John eligible. The guardian says no. The NCAA says “Okay, but then John Doe won’t be cleared to play”. The NCAA waits for the paperwork. Eventually, the season is almost upon us and news of the John Doe case hits the nation. Fans are upset and screaming at the NCAA to clear John Doe. He would have been cleared a long time ago if the guardian provided the necessary paperwork. Eventually the guardian caves and provides the necessary papers to the NCAA who quickly clears John Doe. The NCAA gets scrutinized by everyone, when in reality it was the guardian who delayed the process, not the NCAA. But Jay Bilas would never let you know that.
1. Friday, November 13th is closely approaching. This is the day the Illini travel to Springfield to play their first official game of the season against North Florida. That opponent is ranked better than the likes of Penn State, Virginia Tech, Washington, Nebraska, St. Johns, Boston College, Auburn, and Missouri. North Florida will be a tough task right out of the gate. In fact, Illinois’ first four opponents are all ranked better than the teams mentioned above. There will not be multiple games to start the season against the Sisters of the Poor to get the freshmen and transfers adjusted and settled in. With the many newcomers, injuries, and tough start of the schedule, it truly was a great year for the Europe trip. We will see if the trip paid off early in November as there will be no cake walks in the first four games.
2. Last year, Illinois shot 44.4% from two point land. That was good for 300th in college basketball. This is something that needs to be improved upon this season to be a successful team. Not a single player on the team last year shot over 50% from inside the arc. The highest percentage was Rayvonte Rice at .491, but he now plays in Europe. Leron Black (.486), Malcolm Hill (.467), Nnanna Egwu (.457), and Mav Morgan (.455) round out the top five last year in 2p%. For comparison, Alabama - a fellow NIT team - had six of their nine players shoot over 50% from two. Illinois can’t be successful if they can’t convert the easy buckets inside. Kendrick Nunn was second on the team last year with 177 two point attempts, and he only converted 77 of those (.435). Will Thorne, Finke, and the rest of the newcomers be enough to improve Illinois’ percentages? Mike Thorne (.536 last year) will provide an inside presence, but will it be enough?
3. Time for some positive stats. Illinois had the best free throw percentage in the nation last year shooting just under 80%. I wish I could end this thought here, but there is a catch to this positive stat. Illinois never went to the line. Illinois was ranked 315 out of 351 teams in free throw rate. For every 100 field goal attempts, Illinois shot 31.2 free throws. With only two B1G teams (Maryland and Purdue) ranked in the top 150 in Free Throw rate last year, maybe it’s a sign that the Big Ten refs don’t like to call fouls. Either way, if Illinois is going to shoot that well from the line again this year, then they need to find a way to get to the freebies more often. Some eye doctor appointments for referees might do the trick as well.
4. Enough with numbers, let’s talk letters such as “C”. It is a letter stitched on the NHL jersey of each team’s captain. Malcolm Hill has to wear the “C” this year. He is the face of the program. Malcolm is young for his age as he skipped the 2nd grade. In October of 2015, he left his teenage years behind him and said hello to age 20. It’s time for him to step up and be the leader on this team. In the NHL, the letter “A” goes to two assistant captains. I guess Kendrick Nunn gets one by default. He appears to be the second guy behind Malcolm. The other “A” goes to Tracy Abrams. He might not be able to play, but this is his 5th year at Illinois. He should understand the culture and help sculpt the newcomers into the players they need to be. I consider Tracy the coach off the court. He is a veteran, the old guy on the team, the teacher, the mentor. He might be missing his second consecutive year, but he is still a very important piece of this team. In the future, Jalen Coleman-Lands could be the next player to wear the “C” on his jersey.
5. The Illinois Basketball players started their own twitter account. The username is @illini_triller. They mostly post videos where they lip sync rap songs, but the videos are pretty funny and one never knows what they might post next.
6. It’s crazy how unlucky Illinois basketball is. Over the summer, this season appeared to be the one to get Illinois back to the dance and back to relevancy. Then Darius Paul happens. Tracy Abrams happens. Jalen Coleman-Lands happens. Leron Black happens. Kendrick Nunn happens. That’s 5 of the top 7 to 8 players that are now inured or, in Paul’s case, off the team. Michigan was a good team that was decimated by injuries last season. Hopefully Illinois can get players healthy and acclimated to each other quickly this year.
7. Speaking of Michigan, John Beilein went 16-16 and 8-10 in the Big Ten last year. John is a good coach who lost players like Caris Levert and Derrick Walton Jr. to injuries. Those injuries resulted in a poor season. That season will be swept under the rug. The excuse will be injuries and the season will be forgotten. No blame lies on Beilein, he can’t control injuries. John Beilein has a track record of success, John Groce doesn’t. Even though a coach like John Beilein might not be able to save Illinois’ season, John Groce will be expected to. John Groce will be evaluated in a season where true evaluation is impossible. I’m not saying Groce is a good or bad coach. I’m only stating that I won’t be able to truly evaluate if he is a good or bad coach this season with everyone injured.
8. Wow, is it nice to see Dee Brown around the program again. He is the shining light in the murkiness that is Illinois Athletics. His smile and positivity always brightens my day. We are lucky to have such a great person represent the Orange and Blue. Hopefully, Dee also helps land some recruits as well.
9. The class of 2017 is like Christmas. Each recruit is like a present. As fans, you know you are getting a bunch of presents this year and as Tom Petty says “the waiting is the hardest part”. Class of 2016 was like a bad birthday where you received only one present. It was a TV. You really needed a TV, but it wasn’t the big flat screen with all the bells and whistles you wanted. Instead it was Te’Jon Lucas, a TV that gets the job done, but doesn’t wow you yet. Hopefully, Illinois can get some Christmas present early this year. It will depend if Illinois is on the good or bad list. Time will tell.
10. Speaking of recruiting, Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan was recently cleared to play by the NCAA. Twitter was really heated about this one. Purdue and college basketball fans were quick to blame the NCAA for taking too long to resolve Swanigan’s eligibility. I don’t know who is to blame in this instance; however, it isn’t always the NCAA’s fault. In some cases the NCAA gets leads about a player such as John Doe. The NCAA has to investigate to make sure John Doe is eligible to play. It could be as simple as needing some paperwork to examine, before they can clear the player. The NCAA asks John Doe’s guardian/school for some paperwork needed to make John eligible. The guardian says no. The NCAA says “Okay, but then John Doe won’t be cleared to play”. The NCAA waits for the paperwork. Eventually, the season is almost upon us and news of the John Doe case hits the nation. Fans are upset and screaming at the NCAA to clear John Doe. He would have been cleared a long time ago if the guardian provided the necessary paperwork. Eventually the guardian caves and provides the necessary papers to the NCAA who quickly clears John Doe. The NCAA gets scrutinized by everyone, when in reality it was the guardian who delayed the process, not the NCAA. But Jay Bilas would never let you know that.
