Top point guard target Jeremy Fears visits Illinois
Point guard Jeremy Fears from Indiana prep school La Lumiere is one of the Illini's top recruiting targets in the class of 2023.
On Wednesday, Fears made the trip to Champaign for an unofficial visit. He recaps that trip and talks recruiting and summer hoops in this update from Orange and Blue News.
Along with Chicago Kenwood and Mac Irvin Fire forward J.J.Taylor, Fears figures to be one of the top priorities for the Illini and head coach Brad Underwood in the class of 2023.
During the visit on Wednesday, Fears said he and his family got to tour the campus, basketball facilities, player dorms, and more.
"The visit went well," he said. "I got to meet the assistant coaches and Coach Underwood. They showed us the arena. It was much bigger than I expect. I had never been to Illinois or seen the State Farm Center in person."
Fears spent the day getting to know newly appointed assistant coaches Chester Frazier and Geoff Alexander. He also got to spend some quality time with Underwood
"Coach Underwood is a great coach and great person," Fears said. "He gave me a lot of knowledge and information about the program. He was telling me about the program and the culture."
Coming off of an impressive spring playing up an age group with 17U Brad Beal Elite, a Nike EYBL club, Fears has seen his recruitment kick into high gear.
He already holds 16 early offers, including Illinois, Indiana, Auburn, Creighton, Gonzaga, Iowa State, Iowa, Kansas State, Maryland, Ole Miss, Mizzou, Oklahoma State, and others.
Fears has elite quickness with the ball in his hands and likes to play at a fast pace. That style would fit well at Illinois, he said.
"I watched Illinois a lot this year," Fears said. "They get up and down. They play together and defend. They said my style of play fits their style. I like the way they played together this year".
He was particularly impressed with freshman point guard Andre Curbelo, and envisions himself playing a similar roll if he eventually lands at Illinois.
Though he's enrolled at La Lumiere, Illinois is the home-state school for Fears. He played his freshman year at Joliet West before transferring to the prep school.
"I liked everything about the visit," Fears said. "It was also my first visit, so I didn't know what to expect. It was definitely a good experience. To visit Illinois, my hometown school, that was big."
Now that the dead period is lifted, he plans to take several unofficial visits this summer. His next trip is to Indiana next week followed by a visit to Gonzaga.
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