Two Illini Players Featured in CBS Sports' 2024-25 Player Rankings

With Kylan Boswell and Kasparas Jakucionis, Illinois appears to have no worries in the backcourt

Feb 10, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Kylan Boswell (4) controls the ball against Colorado Buffaloes guard J'Vonne Hadley (1) in the first half at CU Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images / Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

With the NCAA men’s basketball season set to get underway in less than two weeks, CBS released its rankings of the Top 100 and 1 players in the nation. The list was put together by college basketball experts Gary Parrish, Matt Norlander and Kyle Boone. Altogether, 23 Big Ten players were listed, including two Illini:

Kylan Boswell, guard

Clocking in at No. 90 on the list, Boswell, transfer guard from Arizona, is expected to play a big role for this season's Illini. A top-five point guard recruit in the class of 2023, Boswell reclassified to 2022 and joined the Wildcats a year early. Last season, he shot 37.9 percent from long range and led Arizona with 50 steals. At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, he’s a strong guard who can shoot and defend.

Read Boswell's full Illinois on SI scouting report

Meet the Newcomer ➡️ Kylan Boswell#Illini | #HTTO | #EveryDayGuys pic.twitter.com/VnKmIskcVK

— Illinois Men's Basketball (@IlliniMBB) July 10, 2024

Kasparas Jakucionis

Jakucionis – or KJ, as his teammates often call him – is a freshman from Lithuania who landed at No. 86 on CBS' list. It's clear that Jakucionis’ ceiling is sky-high, and CBS even notes that his ranking may be “50 spots too low” by season's end. Pegged as a potential top-10 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Jakucionis is a 6-foot-6 lead guard known for being an ultra-smooth operator out of the pick-and-roll.

Read Jakucionis' full Illinois on SI scouting report: Coming Monday

Kasparas Jakucionis showed his intriguing combination of size, shot-making diversity, pick-and-roll playmaking, and aggressiveness at the U18s, playing off hesitation moves, making intelligent reads, finding teammates on the move, and getting his shot off at will at 6'6. pic.twitter.com/48TZ4LfBtT

— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) September 13, 2024

After Illinois added 10 newcomers in the offseason, questions will swirl around the Illini for weeks – and perhaps months – into the season. But none of them will be about this backcourt. Featuring Jakucionis and Boswell at the 1 and 2, the Illini already have the key ingredients to ponder another deep run in the NCAA tournament.

Other Big Ten players in CBS' rankings (in order):

100. Kobe Johnson, UCLA
94. Jaden Akins, Michigan State
93. Fletcher Loyer, Purdue
92. Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue
88. Dylan Andrews, UCLA
87. Mackenzie Mgbako, Indiana
72. Desmond Claude, USC
68. Julian Reese, Maryland
63. Malik Reneau, Indiana
53. Jackson Shelstead, Oregon
45. Dawson Garcia, Minnesota
43. Myles Rice, Indiana
42. Ace Baldwin, Penn State
36. Vlad Goldin, Michigan
30. Payton Sandfort, Iowa
29. Bruce Thornton, Ohio State
24. Ace Bailey, Rutgers
18. Oumar Ballo, Indiana
17. Dylan Harper, Rutgers
15. Great Osobor, Washington
9. Braden Smith, Purdue

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