Brad Underwood doesn’t sound like a coach trying to sell hope when he talks about Illinois’ freshman class. He sounds like a guy who has watched them enough to know exactly what each one can become.
Ahead of the 2026-27 season, Underwood appeared on “The Illinois Script” and went player by player through the group, laying out what he sees in each first-year Illini. The message was simple: this class has real depth, real tools and, at least for now, no obvious passengers.
Start with Quentin Coleman, who Underwood believes can stuff the stat sheet in every direction.
“Q’s a guy that wouldn’t shock me, at some point, if he has a triple-double. He’s a guy that can score it.
He’s learning to become a great player, in terms of making others better around him. Rebounds the basketball, ultra-competitive - I mean, a fighter.
He has one speed, and it’s full speed.
“His competitive side is his best attribute. He’s got a chance to be an elite defender.
And I think he starts elevating others around him. And I think with [David Mirkovic] coming back as well, that’ll help him.
“He can fill a stat sheet, and he does it in a lot of ways. He’s a very, very good shooter.
He’s a hard downhill driver. And he’s unafraid as a freshman, which is really nice to see.
… We actually want him to be a little more aggressive on the defensive side, in terms of risk-taking, and try to go get some steals. But he’s got a great motor.”
Illinois has already seen that in exhibition play, where Coleman has looked every bit like the kind of all-around weapon Underwood described. He’s shown scoring touch at multiple levels, a real feel as a passer and elite rebounding for his position. With his athleticism and nonstop effort, he looks built to climb quickly on defense, too.
Ethan Brown may not have arrived with the same recruiting buzz, but Underwood sees a player who keeps making things happen.
“Ethan’s a guy that, again, was a back gym guy, kind of. Great, great shooter.
Very gifted athlete. Got great anticipation, smart.
Can play multiple positions. And just finds a way.
The ball never sticks with him. He just finds a way to elevate others.
Really excited about him.”
Brown wasn’t a blue-chip name coming out of high school, but he’s already starting for the No. 3 team in the country as a freshman. That kind of rise fits the profile Underwood laid out: a shooter, an athlete, a smart connector who makes the offense move.
Lucas Morillo brings a different kind of profile, one built on size, feel and a reputation that preceded him.
“Lucas Morillo is a guy that has a big reputation. Again, was very successful in the prep school ranks, and in the northeast.
Again, a big guard. Can really drive it, can finish.
He’s a great passer. I loved him, I thought he was one of the best rebounders on the Nike circuit for a guard.
He and Quentin are elite in that area for their positions. Again, a guy that’s a very heady, cerebral player.”
Morillo was once the headliner in this class before Coleman committed late in the recruiting cycle, and he still has plenty going for him. His size, toughness and basketball IQ all stand out. The swing skill is his shooting, which will help determine how much he plays in 2026-27.
Zavier Zens may be the most ready-made role player in the group. Underwood pointed to the winning pedigree first.
“Zavier Zens, Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin.
I think he was 83-2, or something like that, in his high school career. Knows what winning looks like.
Great shooter, knows how to play the game the right way. He impacts winning at a high level.
Extremely strong. Again, I think, can play multiple spots on the floor defensively.
He’s been tremendous.”
At 6-foot-7 and 215 pounds, Zens doesn’t look like the usual freshman trying to survive physically. He can shoot, he cuts well and he competes on defense without giving away many easy mistakes. He may not be the flashiest newcomer, but he has a real chance to carve out minutes by the end of the season.
Lincoln Williams might have the highest pure athletic ceiling of the bunch.
“Lincoln Williams, a guy we talked about a lot for two years in our offices. Went through some challenges in high school, and that story is out there.
As gifted an athlete as anybody who I’ve had in my 10 years here. The game is easy for him.
He’s a ball of clay right now. He’s letting us mold him.
“And he’s doing a lot of really good things. I think, defensively, can really impact us.
The ball finds him. So it’s fun to be around and see how much he’s improving, really on a day-to-day basis.”
Williams sounds like the kind of player coaches love to work with: explosive, hard-working and open to being coached. That gives him a big defensive ceiling and a pretty solid floor. The offense, beyond what he can do above the rim, figures to take more time.
Then there’s Landon Davis, whose size and skill set could make him especially important if Illinois needs him sooner than expected.
“Landon Davis, young man we found from Iowa. Very successful high school program.
Six-foot-nine, 240 [pounds]. He’s got a 7-foot-2 wingspan.
A very good shot blocker. A guy that can really, really shoot it.
“Again, he fits into that mold of positional size and shooting for us. He’s going to help us.
He’s got the ability to play the 5, as a small-ball 5. He can play some 4.
He’s getting much more comfortable dribbling the basketball and driving it.”
Davis may be asked to give Illinois meaningful minutes because of what Underwood called a longer-than-expected absence for Preseason All-American David Mirkovic. Even with a frame that still leaves room to grow, Davis has the tools to hold up on defense. The bigger question is whether he can do more than stand in the corner and shoot as a freshman.
That answer could matter a lot. If Davis brings more than spot-up value, Illinois’ depth could end up being the best of the Underwood era in Champaign, and maybe the best the program has ever had.
Underwood made clear he feels good about the whole group, not just the headliners.
“Again, this freshman group, I’m really, really excited about. They’re all in a position right now where we haven’t lost them. [Usually,] there’s some that you think are just struggling, but this group has been right on point to this point.”
That matters because Illinois opens Monday, and the months of summer and fall work have already given this staff a good read on who’s ready and who still has room to grow. With six freshmen on the roster, the expectation was that a couple would drift behind and maybe disappear from the picture by spring. Instead, Underwood’s tone suggests the opposite.
Not every freshman is going to play. That’s never how it works.
But the fact that all of them still have a real shot at minutes is a good sign for the roster, for the practices and for the mood around the program. Right now, Illinois has a freshman class that looks engaged, competitive and very much in the mix.
In Other News...
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Friday night brings a familiar Big Ten measuring stick for Illinois, with Nebraska heading to Champaign for a 7 p.m. kickoff on FOX and FOX ONE. It is the kind of matchup that tends to reveal a lot about where a team really stands, and the Illini will have the benefit of home field as they try to back up the progress they have made since these two teams last met.
That September 20 meeting in 2024 was a tight one, with Illinois edging Nebraska 31-24 in overtime after a game that featured strong showings from Luke Altmyer and Dylan Raiola. This rematch comes with the same kind of stakes and a little extra edge, because both programs know how thin the margin was the first time around and how quickly a Friday night can turn into a season-shaping result. [Read more 🡒]
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Illinois May Have Found Another Intriguing Long Term Wing
Illinois may have added another long-term piece on the wing with the commitment of Zavier Zens, a 6-foot-7 forward who is set to join the program for the 2026-27 basketball season. His profile fits the modern mold Illinois keeps chasing: a player who can stretch the floor, handle the ball well enough to be useful in different spots, and bring a high basketball IQ to the table. Add in a high school rsum that includes three state championships and individual honors, and it is easy to see why the Illini staff is intrigued.
Zens still has work ahead of him before he gets to Champaign, and the path to minutes will not be easy once he arrives. Even so, he already gave a glimpse of what he can bring in a preseason exhibition game, where he turned in a promising performance that only added to the buzz around his future fit. For Illinois, it is the kind of commitment that does not just fill a roster spot, but hints at another versatile wing option down the line. [Read more 🡒]