It has been a whirlwind of an offseason for Illinois and coach Brad Underwood. The Illini have lost a quartet of contributors to the transfer portal, including Carey Booth (Colorado State), Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn (UNLV), Tre White (Kansas) and the absolute shocker: Morez Johnson Jr. (Michigan).
Then, before the dust even settled following those departures, the freshman duo of Kasparas Jakucionis and Will Riley announced the next steps in their respective basketball careers: into the NBA.
A pair of incoming freshmen (Brandon Lee and Keaton Wagler) are set to join the program, but Underwood had many more holes to fill in the roster. Although he and his staff did work the transfer portal, their greatest gains have come on the international scene – and suddenly the Illini appear equipped to again compete for a Big Ten title and perhaps put together a deep NCAA Tournament run next season.
To date, Illinois’ transfer haul numbers just one (Arkansas’ Zvonimir Ivisic), but it’s not as if Underwood and his staff have been inactive on that front. Meanwhile, by pouring efforts into securing prospects across the pond, the Illini have thus far landed Montenegrin forward David Mirkovic and Serbian point guard Mihailo Petrovic.
NEWS: Mega Superbet PG Mihailo Petrovic has committed to Illinois, agent Misko Raznatovic told ESPN. The 22-year-old Serbian is an MVP candidate in the Adriatic League, ranking second in assists (7.3 per game) and top-10 in scoring (14.3 ppg). Big pickup for Brad Underwood. pic.twitter.com/2363F0nuHk
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) April 22, 2025
With Illinois’ latest additions accounted for, college basketball expert Jon Rothstein has the Illini slotted 30th in his Wednesday edition of the Rothstein 45.
Today’s edition of the ROTHSTEIN 45 is now LIVE following recent updates.
TOP 10:
1. Houston
2. Purdue
3. St. John’s
4. UCLA
5. BYU
6. UConn
7. Michigan
8. Texas Tech
9. Duke
10. ArkansasCC: @FDSportsbook, @FanDuelResearch.https://t.co/J8d1yo70R7
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) April 23, 2025
Rothstein, for now, expects Underwood to roll out a starting lineup of Petrovic, Kylan Boswell, Ty Rodgers and the Ivisic twins (Zvonimir and Tomislav).
Currently, the Illini sit behind numerous Big Ten squads, including Purdue (No. 2), UCLA (No. 4), Michigan (No. 7), Oregon (No. 16), Michigan State (No. 19), Wisconsin (No. 21) and Ohio State (No. 26).
But with Illinois striving to land a star wing (Cal’s Andrej Stojakovic, Florida State’s Jamir Watkins and Italy’s Dame Sarr are in the discussion), it would be no surprise to see the Illini leapfrog a number of their conference foes in the eyes of experts before the 2025-2026 campaign tips off.
Illinois Coach Brad Underwood Seeking Experience in Transfer Portal
Cal Transfer Andrej Stojakovic Set to Visit Illinois Campus on Tuesday
Illinois’ Latest International Signee Mihailo Petrovic: What He Brings
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