Orlando Antigua is coming back to Champaign as an associate head coach, the team announced Sunday evening. The former assistant of Brad Underwood will return to the sideline at the State Farm Center this season, following the departure of assistant coach Chester Frazier.
Antigua served as an assistant at Illinois from 2017-21, recruiting big names such as Andre Curbelo and former Big Ten Freshman of the Year Kofi Cockburn. He primarily worked with the team’s big men, mentoring and helping to develop Cockburn and Giorgi Bezhanishvili, who holds the Illini’s single-game scoring record for a freshman.
Antigua left Champaign in 2021 to join John Calipari as an assistant at Kentucky, a role which he previously held from 2009-14 when he recruited Karl-Anthony Towns, Nerlens Noel and Archie Goodwin, all of whom went on to have successful NBA careers.
During his most recent stint at Kentucky, Antigua was also responsible for the recruitment of sharpshooting freshman phenom Reed Sheppard. The five-star wasn’t all, as Antigua was the priority recruiter for four-stars Ugonna Onyenso and Adou Thiero in 2022.
In his return to Illinois, Antigua will serve as another experienced recruiter for the program alongside fellow assistant Tim Anderson. Additionally, having had previous success working with Illinois’ big men, he will be a strong mentor for incoming prospects Morez Johnson, Jason Jakstys and transfer Carey Booth. With the Illini still having three open scholarship spots, Antigua will likely begin recruiting immediately to fill out the roster.
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