Brad Underwood rebuilt Illinois’ roster. Will it work?

Greetings and salutations, Illinois Land!

It’s been a minute since I’ve graced the pages of The Champaign Room. At that time, Brad Underwood had just finished losing another NCAA Tournament game, this time to Arkansas. That particular game was a nearly perfect carbon copy of several previous contests in the 2022-23 season.

Dull. Uninspired. Sloppy. Apathetic.

At the post-game press conference, Underwood made a joke about sophomore guard RJ Melendez, to which Underwood felt the need to verbally clarify “it was meant to be funny, RJ.”

Melendez, like so many other players on the Illinois basketball roster, had fallen out of good graces with not only the fanbase, but seemingly the entire coaching staff. It looked like Coleman Hawkins (Jr.) and Terrence Shannon, Jr. (RS – Sr.) were heading to either the NBA or to play professionally in Europe.

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