The NBA’s latest schedule release does more than map out the 2026-27 season. It opens the door to something the league clearly wants more of: games in college basketball cathedrals.
Three NBA games are set for college campuses, with the Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets heading to Colorado’s CU Events Center, the Minnesota Timberwolves and Indiana Pacers playing at Iowa State’s Hilton Coliseum, and the NBA Cup Final landing at Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse. Adam Silver has made it clear he wants the league in iconic college venues, not just the usual NBA buildings.
Hilton Coliseum is a strong first example. The Pacers’ trip to Ames on Oct. 7 comes with a built-in storyline, as Tyrese Haliburton returns to the place where he spent two seasons before entering the NBA Draft after his 2019-20 sophomore year.
He earned Second-Team All-Big 12 honors at Iowa State, then went No. 12 overall to the Kings after averaging 15.2 points per game. That game should have no trouble drawing a crowd.
The Nuggets’ game also figures to pull in fans from Boulder, with University of Colorado graduates and local residents expected to help fill the 11,064-seat arena.
And that’s where the conversation turns to Champaign.
The NBA has a real chance to keep pushing this idea, and State Farm Center belongs on the list. A Bulls, Timberwolves, Bucks, Wizards or Clippers game would make plenty of sense there, especially for fans in Champaign who would love to see an NBA team - or a former Illini - right in their own backyard.
The Bulls and Timberwolves are already set for a preseason meeting on Friday, Oct. 16, which makes that matchup a natural fit for State Farm Center. The Bulls have a strong local following in Champaign, and Minnesota brings two former Illini into the picture in Ayo Dosunmu and Terrence Shannon Jr.
Dosunmu was traded to the Timberwolves last season and is expected to play a major role next season. Shannon Jr. has seen less time at the NBA level so far, but his role should grow next season.
That would create a neat homecoming angle for Ayo and TSJ, who could step back into the building where their jerseys hang in the rafters and face Caleb Wilson and the Bulls. It would also give a preseason game a little more snap, and probably a sold-out building to go with it.
In Other News...
Illinois Just Added Another Big Piece To Its Future Backcourt Push
Illinois is using its recent Final Four run as a springboard into the next recruiting cycle, and Brad Underwood is lining up more high-end backcourt visitors for the fall. The latest wave includes several five-star targets, with the staff continuing to push hard after already landing five-star shooting guard Quentin Coleman for the 2026 class and keeping the momentum going into the 2026-27 roster build.
One of the biggest names in that group is 2027 combo guard NaVarro Bowman Jr., who is set to take an official visit to Champaign on Sept. 10, while 2028 combo guard Brady Pettigrew is also on the visit calendar. For Illinois, the timing matters as much as the talent, because Underwood is clearly trying to stack perimeter pieces early and give the program another path to stay in the national conversation well beyond last springs breakthrough. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Freshmen Are Already Drawing Some Intriguing Former Illini Comparisons
The early look at Illinois 2026-27 freshmen class is already inviting some familiar Brad Underwood-era comparisons, which is usually a good sign that the roster has both length and upside worth talking about. Lincoln Williams, Landon Davis, Ethan Brown and Quentin Coleman all bring different skill sets to Champaign, and the broader point of the breakdown is less about projecting a finished product than about sketching what each player might become once they get into the programs system.
What makes the exercise useful for Illinois fans is how easily these freshmen can be lined up with former Illini who helped define the Underwood era in different ways, from physical wings to shot-making guards to versatile pieces who found their roles over time. The comparisons are still speculative, of course, but they offer a basic read on how this group could fit, and which newcomers may be the kind of players who start looking very familiar once the season actually gets here. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Just Earned A Real Shot At An Elite 2027 Big Man
Darius Wabbingtons recruitment has started to take on the shape of a real national chase, and Illinois is right in the middle of it. The 2027 five-star big man has lined up official visits to six finalist schools, giving the Illini a chance to make their pitch against a strong group that also includes Indiana, Louisville, Arizona, North Carolina and Texas. Wabbingtons background already stands out, too, with both high school and international experience adding to the intrigue around a prospect whose ceiling has made him one of the more closely watched young frontcourt players in the country.
For Illinois, the encouraging part is not just being included, but being included at this stage after the list tightened. Wabbington comes in as a major target with plenty of room for the next wave of recruiting momentum, and his profile suggests the kind of big man every program wants to keep in the conversation. The visits will matter, and so will the impression Illinois makes when the dust settles on this round of evaluation. [Read more 🡒]