Today marked another unexpected turn of events for Illinois Basketball. Earlier this morning, Temple transfer Jeremiah Williams announced via Twitter that he has decommitted from Illinois, saying he will be opening his recruitment “100%.”

Williams transferred from Temple to Iowa State for the 2022-23 season. However, he did not end up playing due to an Achilles injury suffered last October, according to 247Sports.

Williams committed to the Illini on June 1 and decommitted 22 days later. According to 247Sports, Williams never joined the rest of the Illini team in Champaign and the Illini never officially announced Williams’ addition to the team.

Since Williams transferred twice in two years, he would have needed a waiver from the NCAA to be eligible to play this upcoming season. His injury was also a concern.

Before the injury, Williams was important for Temple with averages of 9.5 PPG, 3.5 REB and 4.3 AST per game during the 2021-2022 year, according to ESPN.

This marks another loss for Illinois in their pursuit of another point guard following the departure of Jayden Epps and Skyy Clark, 2022-23’s point guards.

Epps has transferred to Georgetown, while Clark has committed to Louisville. Clark left Illinois midseason in January due to undisclosed personal reasons.

The Illini were originally in pursuit of guard RayJ Dennis, but when Dennis committed to Baylor, eyes turned to Williams.

Williams would have provided a scoring boost and defensive versatility for a new look Illini team as they bring in a variety of freshmen and transfers.

In addition, Williams would’ve been potentially useful for years to come, as he still has three years of eligibility left.

The Illini will have to look elsewhere for guard help, but the market is looking slim as most transfers have committed elsewhere and the NBA draft concluded Thursday.

With Williams gone, the Illini now have one scholarship spot left on their roster.

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