‘Now or Never’: Hawkins, Shannon Gear Up for ‘Last Dance’ at Illinois

Now or never. Now or never. Now or never.

Those three words would not leave Coleman Hawkins’ mind. Locked in on pursuing his dreams and taking his game to the next level, Hawkins submitted his name into the 2023 NBA Draft with the intention of hearing his name called on draft night and becoming a professional basketball player.

Announcing his decision on March 28 to enter the NBA Draft while maintaining college eligibility, Hawkins seemed destined to leave Champaign after spending three seasons with the Orange and Blue, a career that included three NCAA Tournament appearances, a Big Ten regular-season title, and a conference tournament championship.

After much thought and consideration and assessing all of his options, Hawkins decided to “run it back” and return to Illinois, the place he called home for three years. While he received lots of…