Getty Image / Lance King
This season starter off with so much promise for the Illinois basketball program/
They won’t 7 of their first 9 games to open the year, including neutral-site wins over UCLA and Texas.
Unfortunately, they’ve hit a bit of a rough patch since that strong start. The Illini have now lost 3 of their last 5 games, including a home loss to Penn State, a blowout loss to Missouri, and a loss to Northwestern that dropped them to 0-3 in the Big 10.
Now it looks like things are getting a little bit worse for Illinois basketball in the midst of their current slump.
According to IlliniGuys, Illinois guard Skyy Clark is already heading for the transfer portal in January of his freshman season despite getting regular minutes for the Illini.
Breaking News – Former 5-Star Point Guard Skyy Clark Leaves Illini Program@KedPrince4: "No one within or surrounding @IlliniMBB thought the Orange and Blue career of Skyy Clark would last four years. It turns out, it didn't even last four months."https://t.co/oVXAEhzUei
— IlliniGuys (@Illini_Guys) January 6, 2023
Clark joined Illinois as a 4-star recruit this season and was the highest rated recruit in their class.
Since joining the team, Clark has been an important part of the rotation for the Illini. So far this season, the guard is averaging 7 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 24.4 minutes per game.
Clark’s absence will certainly be noticed by a team with a very guard-heavy rotation. Clark is one of 4 guards currently averaging at least 20 minutes per game for Illinois.
The timing also couldn’t be much worse for the Illini as they try to turn around their current form while having to take on Wisconsin twice, Ohio State, Indiana, and Michigan State before the end of the month.
Clark shouldn’t have a problem finding a new team in the transfer portal, but he’ll now head to that team having played just about half of his freshman season.