Andrej Stojakovic Announces Return to Illinois – What It Means for 2026-27

All things considered, Brad Underwood couldn’t have expected anything more.

Underwood knew his Illinois roster would need some remodeling after this past season’s Final Four run, with Kylan Boswell, Ben Humrichous and AJ Redd all out of eligibility, and with the Keaton Wagler mahic carpet ride flying out of Champaign to some faraway NBA city. What he certainly hoped for was something less than a tear-it-down-to-the-studs rebuild.

On Friday, Underwood was assured that the last wing of the project that had remained unaccounted was finally a wrap: Andrej Stojakovic announced he would be returning to the Illini for his senior season in 2026-27.

Why Andrej Stojakovic’s return was so critical for Illinois

As difficult as it is to calculate Stojakovic’s impact for the Illini last season, it’s even harder to put into words what he means to Illinois’ retention efforts and next season’s outlook. On the one hand, Stojakovic was the program’s prized transfer, the son of an NBA All-Star and finished 2025-26 as the Illini’s second-leading scorer.

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Then again, he didn’t start in a single game after mid-February, shot blanks from three-point range most of the season (Stojakovic missed 13 of his last 16 tries from three) and pulled strange, occasional disappearing acts (such as his scoreless game in the regular-season loss to Michigan).

So with forwards David Mirkovic and Jake Davis and bigs Tomislav Ivisic and Zvonimir Ivisic already having committed to running it back next season, was Stojakovic’s return really that big of a deal for the Illini?

Um, that’s a hard yes. Not only is Stojakovic most likely to lead the Illini in scoring in 2026-27 – he can be counted on to initiate offense, take advantage of the driving lanes Illinois’ spacing provides and often make something out of nothing on the drive – but he will be motivated by an NBA future to improve his perimeter stroke over the summer. Even if he falls short in that regard, Stojakovic’s fit with his teammates and the…

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Publish date : 2026-04-17 21:01:00

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