One of the biggest names in the transfer portal is headed to Illinois.
Cal guard Andrej Stojaković, one of the top scorers in the ACC last season and the son of former NBA all-star Peja Stojaković, has committed to the Fighting Illini,
.
Stojaković chose Illinois over North Carolina and Stanford, his other two finalists.
As a sophomore last season, the 6-foot-7 Stojaković averaged 17.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game for a Cal team that finished 14-19. He had a sizable role in the Golden Bears’ offense, averaging 13.9 shots per game, though he shot just 42.7% overall and 31.8% from 3-point range. He ended the year on a tear, averaging 29 points per game and shooting 47.1% from beyond the arc in Cal’s final three games.
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Stojaković, a McDonald’s All-American who began his career at Stanford, is rated as the No. 35 player in the transfer portal,
The commitment from Stojaković continues what has been a busy offseason for coach Brad Underwood’s program.
Though it lost guard Tre White and Morez Johnson Jr. to the portal, Illinois has landed commitments from a pair of Serbian prospects, both of whom were playing professionally overseas — forward David Mirkovic and guard Mihailo Petrovic. Though Stojaković was born in California while his father was playing for the
, he’s of Serbian descent.
The Illini also added Croatian big man Zvonimir Ivisic from the portal from Arkansas, reuniting him with his brother Tomislav, the team’s second-leading scorer last season.
It will make Illinois perhaps the most internationally influenced roster in major college basketball next season, a fact that isn’t lost on Underwood. After Stojaković’s commitment, the ninth-year Illinois coach
posted a computer-generated picture on social media of himself in an orange tracksuit and a cap crouching down in front of a Soviet-era khrushchevka apartment building.
With the addition of Stojaković, the Illini could very well have a roster that will earn them a preseason top-25 ranking come fall.
“I think the main reasons were pretty clear to my inner circle as a basketball fit,”
. “Coach Underwood has been very aggressive recruiting me from the start and constantly reiterating how much I’m wanted and needed as a basketball player there. They really believe I’m the missing piece to what they think is a national championship team.”
