One of the biggest winners of the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft was Illinois basketball head coach Brad Underwood and the Fighting Illini as a program overall. Illinois had two players drafted in the first round, and they were drafted back-to-back. After Kasparas Jakučionis and Will Riley were drafted, this was the dawn of a new era for Illinois basketball.

Kasparas Jakučionis went to the Miami Heat at pick No. 20, and Will Riley went to the Washington Wizards at pick No. 21. It was the first time Illinois has ever produced two one-and-done players. Brad Underwood vowed that this was only the beginning for the Fighting Illini. Illinois has been a big name in college basketball, but has had a drought in the NBA. Underwood seems determined to change that.

His post on X/Twitter read: “Proud is an understatement. Only the beginning”

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Underwood was hired as the Illinois basketball head coach in March 2017. He was building the program in his first two seasons, and then in his third, the NCAA Tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, since the 2020-21 season, he has led the Fighting Illini to the NCAA Tournament in five straight seasons.

Only two players were drafted into the NBA with Underwood at the helm before the 2025 NBA Draft: Ayo Dosunmu and Brandin Podziemski. This season, the program equaled that in the first round of one NBA Draft.

This result is massive for recruiting and only helps Underwood moving forward. They have been going full speed ahead in recruiting, and with their transfer class this season, it has the makings of the best one yet under Underwood. It is also full of European players, leading Underwood to make an inside joke on his social media about how many different Europeans will be joining the Fighting Illini next year.

After the recent success in Illinois, Underwood signed a massive 6-year extension to stay with the Fighting Illini until 2030-31, worth $4.4 million annually. With Underwood here to stay, it looks pretty likely that Illinois basketball becomes an NBA factory once again. The pieces are there for that to become more annual, and it starts with the fact that Illinois is a Big Ten school, with a lot of money to spend in NIL and now revenue-sharing.