Richey | What does Epps' transfer mean?
Mar. 28—Jayden Epps isn't the first guard to leave Illinois early (and not in the early entrant for the NBA draft kind of way). Nor is he the first to do so after one season. He's not even the first to do it this season.
The list is growing.
Skyy Clark didn't even make it through his entire freshman season, leaving the Illini in January before committing to Louisville not quite two weeks ago. A year ago it was Andre Curbelo and Brandin Podziemski. Before that it was Adam Miller. And before that Alan Griffin and Mark Smith.
Illinois still had some backcourt continuity in previous seasons with guys like Ayo Dosunmu, Trent Frazier, Da'Monte Williams and Andres Feliz. Even got five years from Frazier and Williams. But the transfer portal has become rich with Illinois guards of late, and Epps' Tuesday announcement that he intends to transfer makes for five in the last three offseasons.
Outside of Podziemski they all played significant minutes in key roles. It wasn't enough to get them to stay. A reflection of the transfer portal/name, image and likeness era? An inability to keep multiple guards happy together? Some other internal issue?
It's either a question that has to be answered or a new reality that everyone has to adjust to.
The number of available transfer guards reportedly connected to Illinois in the last two weeks, though, makes it clear Brad Underwood and Co. were already looking for backcourt help. Maybe with foreknowledge Epps was moving on. Or maybe because it's an avenue the Illini staff realized they should have pursued ahead of the 2022-23 season.
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Illinois went all in on Clark as its primary point guard this past season when the one-time five-star recruit went back on the market after decommitting from Kentucky. All in to the point adding a veteran lead guard from the portal wasn't seen as a viable option in keeping everyone happy. Hindsight, 20/20, etc., etc.
It's a piece Illinois was missing this past season. A guard with experience. An actual point guard that could run an offense rather than the "point guard" by committee approach with Epps, Terrence Shannon Jr., Coleman Hawkins and Ty Rodgers once Clark left the team.
The stats back it up.
Per Bart Torvik, Illinois ranks 92nd in adjusted offensive efficiency with those numbers two Final Four games and a national championship away from being finalized. Being one of the worst three-point shooting and free throw shooting teams in the country didn't help that overall offensive metric. Neither did an assist rate nearly as bad. An experienced point guard — a real facilitator — could have helped cure those offensive ills.
That was beginning to look like a portal priority before Epps announced his intent to transfer. It has turned into a necessity. Epps was the closest thing to an experienced point guard on the Illinois roster, and even that was a stretch since he was more of a scorer.
Now it's either put all the point guard eggs in the Niccolo Moretti basket after his redshirt season or find veteran help in the portal. The latter is probably the better idea.
