Long-term relationship led Guerrier to Illini
Jul. 30—CHAMPAIGN — Quincy Guerrier spending his final season of college basketball at Illinois is "Exhibit A" for the upside of not burning any bridges in the recruiting process.
Guerrier has been on the Illini radar for more than five years.
Long enough ago that Jamall Walker was leading his recruitment.
Long enough ago that his October 2018 visit was happening concurrently with the recruitments of guys like E.J. Liddell, Kahlil Whitney, Oscar Tshiebwe, Kofi Cockburn and Terrence Shannon Jr.
The latter, of course, another example of why maintaining a relationship after a recruiting miss can be beneficial. Which is what happened when Guerrier ultimately committed to Syracuse and happened again once Guerrier left the Orange after two seasons and wound up at Oregon.
The third time, as is often said, was the charm for the Illini and coach Brad Underwood.
"Illinois has been recruiting me forever," Guerrier told The News-Gazette recently. "Coach Underwood has been recruiting me since 2017 out of high school from Thetford (Academy). It was an easy choice for me — especially transferring my second time — because he was recruiting me, too, my first time in the portal."
Underwood is about the last vestige of the program Guerrier first visited that fall weekend nearly five years ago, save for strength and conditioning coach Adam Fletcher.
Geoff Alexander was around back then, too, but is in a different role as an assistant coach now. So is new assistant coach Tyler Underwood, who was still playing for the Illini back then. Ubben Basketball Complex also received a $40 million facelift in those intervening years.
What hadn't changed was Guerrier's relationship with Underwood. Nor has the belief Underwood has in what the Montreal native could accomplish at Illinois. Add in a renovated and expanded Ubben, Fletcher's reputation and a healthy name, image and likeness situation, and Guerrier couldn't pass on the Illini this time.
What Guerrier called a "green light" from Underwood doesn't hurt either.
"He has a lot of confidence in me," the 6-foot-8, 220-pound forward said. "When a coach has a lot of confidence like that, it's easier for me to be able to show what I can bring to the table. There's going to be ups and downs. I've just got to make sure I'm trying to make the right play every time and learn from my mistakes.
"He was always saying I was really strong. I know my rebounding is one of the reasons why he still wants me here. He loves my game. He was telling me I could play the 3 or 4. I could shoot the ball and play inside and take advantage of mismatches when smaller guards were going to guard me. It was really about me being a mismatch problem in the league. I think that's why he loves my game and just the way I work hard and just play hard."
Landing Guerrier on the third try went a long way in fulfilling one of Underwood's primary offseason goals. The Oregon transfer celebrated his 24th birthday in May and is the oldest player on the team.
"I would have never thought I'd have been playing college at 24 years old, but I'm grateful to be here," he said. "I think it's going to be a huge advantage for me to be the older guy this year. I've been playing college for four years. I've just got to, with my experience, guide the freshmen and the younger guys."
There are younger players on the Illinois roster, including freshman forward Amani Hansberry. But Guerrier isn't exactly an outlier on what became a veteran Illini team this offseason with his arrival, the additions of fellow transfers Marcus Domask and Justin Harmon and Shannon's withdrawal from the 2023 NBA draft alongside Coleman Hawkins.
"If you look at all the teams that made it to the Elite Eight this year, all the starters were seniors or fifth years pretty much," Guerrier said. "I think it's going to be a huge advantage for us to be old. Just the fact I've played games, went to the Sweet 16 with Syracuse my second year. I've learned a lot playing against every kind of team."
Capitalizing on that experience is Guerrier's goal for his final season. He has a clear plan. One that involves incorporating the best from his two seasons at Syracuse (a career high 8.4 rebounds per game as a sophomore) and his two seasons at Oregon (more shotmaking).
Illinois provides that platform.
Guerrier's previous transfers were all about maximizing his opportunity and making decisions based on the professional basketball career he's pursuing. Part of his reasoning behind leaving Syracuse was the the fact he knew then-coach Jim Boeheim was never going to abandon his vaunted 2-3 zone defense.
Oregon had a history with recruiting Canadians, including Chris Boucher, who shares a mentor with Guerrier, but the new Illini felt like he lost a piece of his game with the Ducks.
"I feel like at Oregon I was shooting the ball a lot and kind of forgot I was a good rebounder," he said.
Another transfer apparently jogged Guerrier's memory. Ty Rodgers was regularly mentioned as Illinois' top rebounder during practice, and the now sophomore guard with the Illini said he's facing some new competition.
"Oh yeah, absolutely," Rodgers said. "He's always in those conversations when we tally up the rebounds at the end of the practices. He's just very consistent. He always goes — kind of like Luke (Goode). When the shot goes up, he's going to go, so you have to box him out.
"He's brought a lot of character. He's obviously older, so he brings a lot of experience to the table. He's just a great guy. Everybody gets along with him. He brings those leadership skills."
