Will Riley should have just finished up his senior year of high school. Instead, he’s preparing to hear his name called in next month’s NBA draft. A single year at Illinois came and went quickly, and the 19-year-old is now just weeks away from a lifelong dream and goal he’s been working toward for years.

“It’s crazy how fast it came to be,” Riley said to reporters at the NBA Draft Combine on Wednesday. “It was like yesterday I was in high school.”

Riley had an up-and-down year at Illinois, starting the year strong before hitting a freshman wall for a long period in the middle of the season. Ultimately though, Riley finished the year on a high note, finding a new, consistent level for the final month of the season and showing the talent that NBA scouts are so high on. In the final 15 games of the season, Riley shot 48% from the field, scored in double-figures 13 times and had five 20-point games.

“Probably when my minutes started to go down a little bit, I was able to just be in the gym, just show coach that I was always going to compete, always going to be there, and then just being able to blossom just by showing confidence on the court,” Riley said about rising out of his slump. “I’m very passionate about adversity, and I feel like itʼs something that you have to face in your basketball career to be able to grow.”

Since leaving Illinois after the team’s second-round loss in the NCAA tournament, Riley has been training in Los Angeles before coming to Chicago for league sanctioned pre-draft activities. When announcing that he would leave Illinois and enter the NBA draft, Riley left little to no room for debate on whether or not he would entertain returning to college. He was already a projected first-round pick, and the goal of his reclassification from 2026 to 2025 was clearly to accelerate his journey to the pro ranks.

“I just feel like I’m ready, ready for the next step,” Riley said.

At the NBA Draft Combine, Riley has met with multiple teams, including the Philadelphia 76ers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Charlotte Hornets and Portland Trail Blazers. In those meetings, teams try to get an understanding of who a player is beyond just their skills on the court. Riley knows exactly what he wants to convey to league executives when he has the chance to sit down with them.

“I want to show that I’m a very competitive player,” Riley said. “I’m also going to show that I’m a good teammate and I’m very coachable.”

Those intangibles are likely not going to be a major question from NBA teams when evaluating Riley. He may be young, but as he showed at Illinois, he plays with a high motor and has an intense energy whenever he takes the court. His calm, kind off-court personality also shines whenever he interacts with the media.

Instead, Riley’s age naturally comes with some areas of on-court physical improvement that are standard for younger players. Riley said that he has received that feedback, as expected, from the teams he has met with so far.

“Just growing physically, gaining more muscle, working on my defense,” Riley said. “That’s probably the main thing I’ve heard so far.”

Physicality and mass has long been a known area of growth for Riley, and he has already made major strides from where he was one year ago. Working with Illinois strength and conditioning coach Adam Fletcher, Riley added 20 pounds to his frame over the course of the season, leaving Champaign at 190 pounds. That helped Riley become more confident in attacking during the latter part of the season and adapt to more physical defensive coverages.

“Just being able to grow in my flexibility and also my weight, (Fletcher) definitely helps a lot,” Riley said. “He’s one of the best strength coaches in the world, for sure.”

However, as NBA teams have said, he can do even more to develop his body, and Riley agrees.

“I’m very able to focus on gaining weight right now because in the season, its a lot harder when youʼre playing a lot of games, back-to-back, it’s very hard to gain a lot of weight,” Riley said. “Right now just been eating a lot, training probably three times a day. Lifting a lot. I’ve also been working on my flexibility a lot.”

As the draft approaches, Riley will continue his intense training regiment and meet with more teams as they decide who they want to draft at their respective positions in the selection process. Riley has been widely thought of as a mid-to-late first round pick, and there are plenty of teams that could use a high-scoring athletic wing with facilitating abilities. While Riley says that he has not given much thought to his range as of yet, he can’t wait to see where he ends up.

“I’m more excited than stressed,” Riley said. “I feel like the only kind of stress that I would face is not knowing where I’m going.”

While Illinois fans on social media have made it clear they would love to have the young Canadian back in Champaign next season, they realistically know that he is headed to the NBA, and they continue to show their support all the same. Riley has felt their love all season long and will always remember the Illini nation’s love wherever he ends up playing next season.

“The Illinois fans, I love them to death. Theyʼve been there for me through the ups and downs. I feel like theyʼre the greatest fans in the world.”

@sahil_mittal24

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