Good Morning, Illini Nation: Illinois offers 2025 forward Silas Barksdale
May 20—Welcome to "Good Morning, Illini Nation," your daily dose of college basketball news from Illini beat writer and AP Top 25 voter Scott Richey. He'll offer up insights every morning on Brad Underwood's team:
Silas Barksdale checks several boxes for Illinois on the "recruit this guy" front. The 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward has real size at his position as a long-armed athlete. Barksdale is also from Newport News, Va., which is prime recruiting territory for assistant coach Chester Frazier, and he helped Woodside (Va.) go 23-5 and win a VHSL Class 5 state championship in 2022-23.
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2025 6'9 Silas Barksdale ( @silasbarksdale ) made the JUMP this year from loaded with Potential to big time player with big time upside #TheWay pic.twitter.com/70MH13HIDU
— Woodside University (@WoodsideMBB) February 17, 2023
Illinois offered Barksdale, a Class of 2025 prospect, earlier this week. He holds other offers from Tennessee, Seton Hall, VCU, Mississippi State, Virginia Tech, Hampton, Norfolk State, Radford, Old Dominion and Richmond.
blessed to be offered from the University of Illinois !! pic.twitter.com/jfGNFsdzDp
— Silas Barksdale (@silasbarksdale) May 17, 2023
Barksdale plays for Boo Williams on the Nike EYBL circuit in the E16 age group. Through nine games this spring, he's averaging 8.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists. Barksdale is shooting 54.5 percent overall, 40 percent on three-pointers (just five attempts) and 63.2 percent at the free throw line. His best game was an 18-point, 14-rebound double-double in April against ProSkills.
The offer for Barksdale marks Illinois' seventh in the Class of 2025 for frontcourt players. Also on the Illini radar are four-star Millbrook (N.C.) forward Colt Langdon, Uniontown (Ohio) Green forward Nikola Bundalo, three-star Wauwatosa West (Wis.) center Kai Rogers, Sierra Vista (Nev.) center Xavion Staton and The Bullis Center (Md.) center Eric Reibe.
