Posts tagged AlexLegion at FanHouse

Illinois basketball coach Bruce Weber had a rare recruiting success in December when he got Alex Legion to transfer to Illinois from Kentucky.

While it remains to be seen whether Legion is part of a turnaround for the Illini after their disastrous 2007-08 season, Weber had some interesting things to say about Legion during a question-and-answer session with Illinois fans in Peoria:

"The players have nicknamed him 'Kobe.' He has a ways to go, but I understand the comparison. He can score, but he doesn't guard anybody and we just had to teach him a new word. Pass. When he gets his first assist, everybody should give him a standing ovation because that will be his first one."

Weber wasn't done there, though. He also got in a nice little shot at the program that was responsible for his biggest recruiting failure:

"The league should be wide open and we can be right in the middle of it. I do know one thing, though. I think Indiana will suck. Don't put that on the Internet."

Sorry, coach. From your mouth to the series of tubes. That's the way it works. Fortunately for you, though, your assessment of the Hoosiers is sure to be right.

Hat tip: Cannot Falter.

What an odd feeling this must be for folks in Champaign. Bruce Weber went after a shooting guard and actually convinced him to enroll at Illinois.

Kentucky transfer Alex Legion chose Illinois over Notre Dame on Saturday night.

"It was a tough situation because they're both great schools, but it came down to relationships," the 6-foot-4-inch, 195-pound Legion said.

The relationship Legion is referring to is the one he has with Illinois assistant Jerrance Howard. Howard was recently added to Bruce Weber's staff after spending four months with Legion at Kentucky where he came along with Billy Gillispie from Texas A&M.

Unfortunately, Legion won't be eligible to play until next season, probably missing the first ten games, but this is still good news for the Illini. After thinking they had Eric Gordon before he left them at the altar for Indiana, and then having Quinton Watkins fail to qualify, the Illini are very thin at shooting guard right now and need all the help they can get.

They beat Missouri on Saturday, but on the season they're still shooting only 29% from three-point land and seemed destined to finish in the middle of the Big Ten again.

On Monday FanHouse's Ryan Ferguson noted that Kentucky freshman shooting guard Alex Legion had decided to transfer.

But today Seth Davis of SI.com reports that Legion is having second thoughts, and that Billy Gillispie is open to keeping him around.

"We met with Alex and his mother Friday, and she informed us of her desire to seek a release for her son," Gillispie said Tuesday. "Shortly after that meeting, Alex told me that he still wanted to be a part of our program. He played in the game against North Carolina Saturday and seemed happy when I spoke with him Sunday."

The UK Athletics site still reports that Legion is leaving, and he's not listed on the official roster. Legion may also want to leave for Michigan. So who knows? A lot of college freshmen go back and forth about whether they want to stick with it, and that's where Legion seems to be right now.