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Jun. 28—Keaton Wagler extended Illinois' string of first-round picks to three consecutive drafts. Is there a player (or more) on the 2026-27 Illini that could keep that streak alive? Some incredibly early mocks for the 2027 NBA Draft say yes.
prefaced his first mock draft for 2027 with the idea that 20 of his top 30 might not even be in the draft a year from now. That the NCAA's incoming 5-for-5 rule and ever-present NIL opportunities might create "the worst second round in NBA history."
But Vecenie did have a pair of Illinois players in his top 20 — sophomore forward David Mirkovic at No. 13 and freshman guard Quentin Coleman at No. 18.
"Mirkovic was one of my favorite players in the country last season and one of the best freshmen who did not declare for the draft," Vecenie wrote. "I'm expecting the Illini to run even more of their offense through the multi-skilled 4-man who has tremendous dribble, pass and shoot skills at his size.
"Coleman is a great shooter from distance who won all-tournament honors at the Under-18 FIBA AmeriCup tournament in Mexico. He plays hard, crashing the glass with impunity. His frame is also filling out, allowing him to absorb contact better on his drives.:
had three Illinois players in his top 30. Coleman (14th) and Mirkovic (25th) were repeats. He also included Providence transfer Stefan Vaaks, who has returned to Estonia temporarily for some national team obligations, at No. 28.
"Vaaks had moments in his freshman year at Providence that looked like clear future NBA material," Sweeney wrote. "He picked a perfect destination in the portal at Illinois, where he'll be allowed a ton of freedom offensively and have lots of room to operate thanks to the Illini's shooting bigs. A breakout year could put him firmly in the first-round conversation."
ESPN's Jeremy Woo, at the moment, is not as high on Illinois' draft prospects. While he also included Coleman (36th), Vaaks (38th) and Mirkovic (44th), his big board also featured Andrej Stojakovic at No. 57.
Continue reading...
prefaced his first mock draft for 2027 with the idea that 20 of his top 30 might not even be in the draft a year from now. That the NCAA's incoming 5-for-5 rule and ever-present NIL opportunities might create "the worst second round in NBA history."
But Vecenie did have a pair of Illinois players in his top 20 — sophomore forward David Mirkovic at No. 13 and freshman guard Quentin Coleman at No. 18.
"Mirkovic was one of my favorite players in the country last season and one of the best freshmen who did not declare for the draft," Vecenie wrote. "I'm expecting the Illini to run even more of their offense through the multi-skilled 4-man who has tremendous dribble, pass and shoot skills at his size.
"Coleman is a great shooter from distance who won all-tournament honors at the Under-18 FIBA AmeriCup tournament in Mexico. He plays hard, crashing the glass with impunity. His frame is also filling out, allowing him to absorb contact better on his drives.:
had three Illinois players in his top 30. Coleman (14th) and Mirkovic (25th) were repeats. He also included Providence transfer Stefan Vaaks, who has returned to Estonia temporarily for some national team obligations, at No. 28.
"Vaaks had moments in his freshman year at Providence that looked like clear future NBA material," Sweeney wrote. "He picked a perfect destination in the portal at Illinois, where he'll be allowed a ton of freedom offensively and have lots of room to operate thanks to the Illini's shooting bigs. A breakout year could put him firmly in the first-round conversation."
ESPN's Jeremy Woo, at the moment, is not as high on Illinois' draft prospects. While he also included Coleman (36th), Vaaks (38th) and Mirkovic (44th), his big board also featured Andrej Stojakovic at No. 57.
Continue reading...
