Peoria Central guard commits to Illinois

The Peoria pipeline to the Illinois basketball program began decades ago.

<p class="MsoNormal">Illinois assistant coaches Wayne McClain and Jerrance Howard, a pair of Peoria products, played key roles in the recruitment of Peoria Central junior guard D.J. Richardson, who announced Thursday his verbal commitment to Illinois.

<p class="MsoNormal">But Richardson appeared even more excited about playing for Illinois coach Bruce Weber.

<p class="MsoNormal">"I'm really cool with coach Weber,'' he said. "He's a real good guy, and I think he's one of the best coaches in the country. All the guards I've seen play for coach Weber, they've been good guards.''

<p class="MsoNormal">When Gurnee Warren junior guard Brandon Paul also announced a verbal commitment to play for Illinois on the same day, Illinois not only landed a pair of 6-foot-4 combo guards who can help with needed perimeter shooting and scoring, but also received a boost in recruiting.

<p class="MsoNormal">"Days like today are useful in a number of ways,'' said national recruiting analyst Dave Telep of Scout.com. "You get a couple guys you really want in the program, in-state guys who are highly respected.

<p class="MsoNormal">"On the flip side, momentum is so big in recruiting. Perception is everything. Now you've gotten a couple guys that get the ball rolling. Momentum and perception are two of the most powerful tools in recruiting.''

<p class="MsoNormal">Illinois recruiters don't have a commitment from the class of 2008. But Illinois kept getting results in the classes of 2009 and 2010, considered strong years within the state. Illinois secured a verbal commitment in November from Waukegan sophomore Jereme Richmond, the state's top player in his class and ranked the nation's No. 4 recruit in 2010 by Scout.com.

<p class="MsoNormal">"I don't understand why more of top players from the state of Illinois don't go there,'' Paul said. "Illinois is such a great school.''

<p class="MsoNormal">Richardson and Paul may have the versatility to play three positions. Richardson ranked No. 54 nationally in the class of 2009 by Rivals.com. He was just outside of Scout.com's top 75, Telep said.

<p class="MsoNormal">Neither Rivals nor Scout listed Paul, a late bloomer this summer.

<p class="MsoNormal">According to recruiting sources, Illinois still seeks a commitment from another junior guard, such as Sterling's Joseph Bertrand.

<p class="MsoNormal">As a sophomore, Richardson averaged 13.6 points and 3.2 rebounds while shooting 47 percent from the field and 58 percent from the free-throw line. A distant cousin of Illini guard Jamar Smith, Richardson made a campus visit last weekend where he spent time with Smith, Demetri McCamey, Jeff Jordan and Brian Carlwell.

<p class="MsoNormal">"He's really comfortable with the players over there,'' said D.J. Richardson Sr. "They embraced him like family. He was thinking if he went somewhere else, he might not know anybody.''

<p class="MsoNormal">He chose the Illini over Ohio State, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, North Carolina State and Marquette.

<p class="MsoNormal">Like Smith, Richardson spends time on shooting drills at Landmark Recreation Center in Peoria. While they've spent time there together, Richardson doesn't mind going there alone.

<p class="MsoNormal">"My ballhandling and jump shot are pretty good,'' Richardson said. "My ballhandling can do it at the college level. The jump shot is getting better.''

<p class="MsoNormal">Paul has been an Illini fan since they reached the NCAA title game in 2005. He already has a few orange and blue items in his closet.

<p class="MsoNormal">"I have a few sweat shirts,'' he said. "I've really liked all the players there, like Dee Brown and Deron Williams. I wanted to keep my options open. Then I realized it might be a once in a lifetime opportunity. I had to get on that.''

<p class="MsoNormal">Paul's stock rose after he joined Team NLP (Next Level Performance), a program directed by former Chicago Bulls forward Dickey Simpkins. Marquette, Iowa, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Texas, Florida, Southern Cal and Clemson were also showing interest in Paul.

<p class="MsoNormal">After a hot spring AAU season, Paul so more interest during the summer circuit. He received the scholarship offer from Illinois in late August, Simpkins said.

<p class="MsoNormal">"He already had God-given talents,'' Simpkins said. "We wanted to mold it and show him the game. It was skill development, explosion drills, shooting and creating a mid-range game. He's an explosive, athletic player who can play above the rim, shoot effortlessly from long distance and get a shot off from mid-range.''

<p class="MsoNormal">John Supinie can be reached at Johnsupinie@aol.com. For more coverage, read Illini Talk blog at www.sj-r.com and www.pjstar.com.