Illinois basketball utility man taps out of 2024-25 season

With just an hour until the tip of the 2024-25 season, the Illinois basketball team reported some bad news.

Coming into the new campaign, the Illini had loaded up the roster from top to bottom with some incredible talent. Brad Underwood had to put this team together, as all but two scholarship players departed from the Elite 8 run we saw back in March.

Those two returning scholarship players were Ty Rodgers and Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn. These two decided to come back for another season in Champaign to help get this team even further this time around. Well, that run didn’t last long.

On Monday night, numerous outlets reported that the Illini lost Rodgers. No, it wasn’t an injury. It was to a redshirt. Rodgers decided to take a redshirt this season.

This news is a bit shocking. The fact Rodgers decided to come back was huge for the program. He was a solid utility player for Underwood’s squad, but now he has decided to tap out for this season and develop his game.

My first thought when the Rodgers news broke was; is this the last we see of Rodgers at Illinois?

I understand wanting to develop, but Rodgers isn’t a freshman. He isn’t coming off a first year of needing more help. This kid just finished his sophomore season where he started all 38 games for an Elite 8 team.

This is complete speculation, but what the redshirt signals to me is that Rodgers is done with the Illini. He is saving a year of eligibility and will come back in 2025-26 with a different program

Rodgers is coming off his best year where he averaged 6.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game. Illinois brought in a lot of talent this offseason, and it was pretty clear after the exhibition game against Ole Miss that Rodgers was not going to start.

But what says Rodgers starts next season? Illinois is going to lose players after the 2024-25 campaign, but you better believe Underwood and the coaching staff are going to be big game hunting this next offseason.

I know nothing, but this one feels like Rodgers is done in Champaign. Regardless, I wish the kid nothing but the best moving forward.