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Let's continue with my countdown of my 30 favorite Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball players of my fandom, spanning from the 1996-97 season until present day. Here are numbers 30-4.
- #30 Morez Johnson Jr.
- #29 Marcus Arnold.
- #28 Matthew Mayer.
- #27 Kevin Turner.
- #26 Mike Davis.
- #25 Trent Frazier.
- #24 D.J. Richardson.
- #23 Tyler Griffey.
- #22 Will Riley.
- #21 Dain Dainja.
- #20 Jack Ingram.
- #19 Marcus Domask.
- #18 Tomislav Ivisic.
- #17 Robert Archibald.
- #16 Brandon Paul.
- #15 Frankie Williams.
- #14 Marcus Griffin.
- #13 Sergio McClain.
- #12 Alfonso Plummer.
- #11 Lucas Johnson.
- #10 David Mirkovic.
- #9 Damir Krupalija.
- #8 Terrence Shannon Jr.
- #7 Keaton Wagler.
- #6 James Augustine.
- #5 Cory Bradford.
- #4 Luther Head.
The 2001-02 Illinois Fighting Illini had just been eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen by #1 seed Kansas, losing by a final outcome of 73-69 after a furious late comeback that ultimately summed up the season, full of promise but falling short of expectations.
In the losing locker room at Wisconsin's Kohl Center, Illinois junior Brian Cook was interviewed, with one of his quotes showing up the next day in the game story of the Chicago Sun-Times and temporarily catching my ire.
Cook said something to the effect that "I can't wait to play with the one-man fastbreak Dee Brown next season."
"What the heck is Cook talking about?" I thought to myself about his reference to the incoming McDonald's All-American Brown out of Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois.
While I knew Brown was supposed to be good, I was more troubled that Cook wasn't devastated about the Illini loss to Kansas, failing to recognize what Illinois was losing.
Gone were redshirt junior Frank Williams to the NBA, senior starters Cory Bradford and Robert Archibald, and veteran reserves Lucas Johnson and Damir Krupalija.
No matter how good Brown was supposed to be, there was no way Illinois would be as great without this amazing group of seniors, which ultimately fell short of reaching a deserved Final Four.
Well, Cook certainly knew what he was talking about, as Brown became the face of Illinois basketball during his four seasons on campus. In fact, during his junior season, Brown was the face of all of college basketball as Illinois started 29-0 and finished 37-2 with a championship game appearance.
Dee Brown is my third favorite Illinois men's basketball player of my 30-year fandom, though in all honestly, he might be the greatest and most important Illini of all time.
Brown brought personality, toughness and talent to the court, which was abundantly apparent his first game as an Illini. The 2002-03 Illini began the season with a Sunday evening home game against Lehigh. At the time I decided to take a semester off between my sophomore and junior years at the U-of-I, for personal rather than academic reasons. As I was back in Chicago living with my parents, I had to listen to the game on radio as my family did not have cable television.
Anyway, I tuned into the game and was immediately drawn in by the description of the play of the whirling dervish Brown, who got the raucous Assembly Hall crowd into a fever pitch. A few weeks later I watched Brown for the first time in an Illini uniform at my Uncle's house as Illinois handled North Carolina during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
When I returned to Champaign as a student that January, it was clear that the generously listed 6'0'' Brown, with his headband and braided hear, was the Big Man on Campus, even with the eventual Big Ten Player of the Year Cook on the team. I'll never forget Illinois students swarming Brown outside of Lincoln Hall the day after Illinois won the 2003 Big Ten Tournament title game against Ohio State, with Dee still wearing the tee-shirt presented in the postgame celebration. Seeing Dee Brown on campus was like running into a celebrity.
From his freakishly fast finishes at the rim to his long-range bombing to his in-your-chest defense, Dee Brown played with flair during his four-year career. Brown was truly must-watch television, as he would seemingly do something once a game that would catch your attention or admiration. As Cook said, Brown on the fastbreak was a sight to behold, with his behind-the-back layup against Cincinnati during the second round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament a personal favorite of mine.
No Illini player had a bigger heart or more toughness than Dee, who along with James Augustine, left as the program's all-time winningest players. I'll never forget a freshman Brown stepping up to Missouri brute Linas Kleiza during the Braggin' Rights game after the Tigers' forward laid out an Illini teammate.
Despite his size, Brown was not a kid to be messed with, truly a bad man on the court, a leader through his words and actions. I'll never forget attending a practice prior to the start of Brown's sophomore season, with Brown chewing out center Aaron Spears for not running hard enough during conditioning drills. Spears didn't even bother talking back to Brown, who commanded that much respect.
With Brown in Champaign, Illinois was always a national-title contender as far as I was concerned. Of course, that proved to be the case as Brown and the rest of the 2004-05 Illini took the college basketball world by storm, routinely blowing out opponents early on, becoming the #1 team in early December to the end of the tournament, and nearly going a perfect 30-0 during the regular season. With Brown popping out the I L L I N O I S lettering on his jersey, as captured on a famous Sports Illustrated cover, Champaign, Illinois was the epicenter of college basketball.
Who would have thought that would ever be possible?
Apparently the 1989 Flyin' Illini had a similar effect on the sport, though it is hard to imagine that great team captivated the nation as much as the '04-05 squad.
Without question, the 2004-05 Illini squad is the greatest Illinois team in program history, with Brown the heart and soul. While the 1988-89 Flying Illini was more talented, no team had as captivating and dominating a season as the Illinois team of Brown's junior season, when the Assembly Hall crowd was serenaded quite frequently with the call of "That's a three-eeeeeeeeeeee Dee-eeeeeeeeeeee Brown!"
Of all my many memories of Brown as a player, my personal favorite has to be during that 2004-05 season, with Illinois in danger of losing at Michigan in early February. As Illinois grinded its way back into the game, Brown jumped into the passing lane, stole the ball and coasted for a layup to give the Illini the lead. He later fed Augustine with a beautiful behind-the-pack pass for a dunk.
I remember watching the second half of that road game at Michigan in the student union as I was waiting to attend a Wilco concert at Foellinger Auditorium. After I got my ticket and heard through the grapevine that Illinois was losing at Michigan, I knew the concert could wait. I immediately ran to the basement of The Union and sweated out the second half, with Brown's layup providing a cathartic realization that Illinois was not losing that night.
In the losing locker room at Wisconsin's Kohl Center, Illinois junior Brian Cook was interviewed, with one of his quotes showing up the next day in the game story of the Chicago Sun-Times and temporarily catching my ire.
Cook said something to the effect that "I can't wait to play with the one-man fastbreak Dee Brown next season."
"What the heck is Cook talking about?" I thought to myself about his reference to the incoming McDonald's All-American Brown out of Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois.
While I knew Brown was supposed to be good, I was more troubled that Cook wasn't devastated about the Illini loss to Kansas, failing to recognize what Illinois was losing.
Gone were redshirt junior Frank Williams to the NBA, senior starters Cory Bradford and Robert Archibald, and veteran reserves Lucas Johnson and Damir Krupalija.
No matter how good Brown was supposed to be, there was no way Illinois would be as great without this amazing group of seniors, which ultimately fell short of reaching a deserved Final Four.
Well, Cook certainly knew what he was talking about, as Brown became the face of Illinois basketball during his four seasons on campus. In fact, during his junior season, Brown was the face of all of college basketball as Illinois started 29-0 and finished 37-2 with a championship game appearance.
Dee Brown is my third favorite Illinois men's basketball player of my 30-year fandom, though in all honestly, he might be the greatest and most important Illini of all time.
Brown brought personality, toughness and talent to the court, which was abundantly apparent his first game as an Illini. The 2002-03 Illini began the season with a Sunday evening home game against Lehigh. At the time I decided to take a semester off between my sophomore and junior years at the U-of-I, for personal rather than academic reasons. As I was back in Chicago living with my parents, I had to listen to the game on radio as my family did not have cable television.
Anyway, I tuned into the game and was immediately drawn in by the description of the play of the whirling dervish Brown, who got the raucous Assembly Hall crowd into a fever pitch. A few weeks later I watched Brown for the first time in an Illini uniform at my Uncle's house as Illinois handled North Carolina during the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
When I returned to Champaign as a student that January, it was clear that the generously listed 6'0'' Brown, with his headband and braided hear, was the Big Man on Campus, even with the eventual Big Ten Player of the Year Cook on the team. I'll never forget Illinois students swarming Brown outside of Lincoln Hall the day after Illinois won the 2003 Big Ten Tournament title game against Ohio State, with Dee still wearing the tee-shirt presented in the postgame celebration. Seeing Dee Brown on campus was like running into a celebrity.
From his freakishly fast finishes at the rim to his long-range bombing to his in-your-chest defense, Dee Brown played with flair during his four-year career. Brown was truly must-watch television, as he would seemingly do something once a game that would catch your attention or admiration. As Cook said, Brown on the fastbreak was a sight to behold, with his behind-the-back layup against Cincinnati during the second round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament a personal favorite of mine.
No Illini player had a bigger heart or more toughness than Dee, who along with James Augustine, left as the program's all-time winningest players. I'll never forget a freshman Brown stepping up to Missouri brute Linas Kleiza during the Braggin' Rights game after the Tigers' forward laid out an Illini teammate.
Despite his size, Brown was not a kid to be messed with, truly a bad man on the court, a leader through his words and actions. I'll never forget attending a practice prior to the start of Brown's sophomore season, with Brown chewing out center Aaron Spears for not running hard enough during conditioning drills. Spears didn't even bother talking back to Brown, who commanded that much respect.
With Brown in Champaign, Illinois was always a national-title contender as far as I was concerned. Of course, that proved to be the case as Brown and the rest of the 2004-05 Illini took the college basketball world by storm, routinely blowing out opponents early on, becoming the #1 team in early December to the end of the tournament, and nearly going a perfect 30-0 during the regular season. With Brown popping out the I L L I N O I S lettering on his jersey, as captured on a famous Sports Illustrated cover, Champaign, Illinois was the epicenter of college basketball.
Who would have thought that would ever be possible?
Apparently the 1989 Flyin' Illini had a similar effect on the sport, though it is hard to imagine that great team captivated the nation as much as the '04-05 squad.
Without question, the 2004-05 Illini squad is the greatest Illinois team in program history, with Brown the heart and soul. While the 1988-89 Flying Illini was more talented, no team had as captivating and dominating a season as the Illinois team of Brown's junior season, when the Assembly Hall crowd was serenaded quite frequently with the call of "That's a three-eeeeeeeeeeee Dee-eeeeeeeeeeee Brown!"
Of all my many memories of Brown as a player, my personal favorite has to be during that 2004-05 season, with Illinois in danger of losing at Michigan in early February. As Illinois grinded its way back into the game, Brown jumped into the passing lane, stole the ball and coasted for a layup to give the Illini the lead. He later fed Augustine with a beautiful behind-the-pack pass for a dunk.
I remember watching the second half of that road game at Michigan in the student union as I was waiting to attend a Wilco concert at Foellinger Auditorium. After I got my ticket and heard through the grapevine that Illinois was losing at Michigan, I knew the concert could wait. I immediately ran to the basement of The Union and sweated out the second half, with Brown's layup providing a cathartic realization that Illinois was not losing that night.
With that win at Michigan, Illinois would improve to 24-0 and remain #1 in everyone's heart with #11, Dee Brown, the main man behind what ESPN announcer Brent Musberger would label "The Stylin' Illini."
I wish that nickname stuck with the 2004-05 squad, and I don't care what anyone says, but there will never be a four-year Illini player as important to winning and popular to a fan base than Dee Brown!
Ultimately, Brown missed the final shot of his Illini career, a three pointer that hit iron during a second round loss to Washington in the 2006 NCAA Tournament, immediately overwhelming me with emotion.
As the CBS cameras followed Dee running off to the locker room, I instantly realized, "Well, that's it for Dee. I'll never see another Illini like him, and Illinois basketball will never be the same without him."
Suddenly, I thought back to when I was a little kid, when the Bears lost at home for the second straight playoffs to the Washington Redskins, with Walter Payton pushed out of bounds a yard short of a first down on fourth down.
At the time, my Aunt Donna said, "Well, that's it for Walter." Later the CBS camera would focus in on Payton, head in his hands, sitting alone on the bench.
Nearly 20 years later, I was experiencing similar feelings with Brown having played his final game as an Illini.
While this may sound crazy, what Payton was to the Bears, Brown was to Illinois basketball, at least in my humble opinion.
While Illinois has returned to an elite status with Brad Underwood, nothing will ever compare to that magical time from 2000-2006 when the Illini were as good as anyone in college basketball, with Brown the face of that era.
Damn, Dee Brown was something else, something special!
It was a pleasure watching Dee play for four seasons, knowing that every game he was in an Illinois uniform, the Illini were most likely going to win.
I wish that nickname stuck with the 2004-05 squad, and I don't care what anyone says, but there will never be a four-year Illini player as important to winning and popular to a fan base than Dee Brown!
Ultimately, Brown missed the final shot of his Illini career, a three pointer that hit iron during a second round loss to Washington in the 2006 NCAA Tournament, immediately overwhelming me with emotion.
As the CBS cameras followed Dee running off to the locker room, I instantly realized, "Well, that's it for Dee. I'll never see another Illini like him, and Illinois basketball will never be the same without him."
Suddenly, I thought back to when I was a little kid, when the Bears lost at home for the second straight playoffs to the Washington Redskins, with Walter Payton pushed out of bounds a yard short of a first down on fourth down.
At the time, my Aunt Donna said, "Well, that's it for Walter." Later the CBS camera would focus in on Payton, head in his hands, sitting alone on the bench.
Nearly 20 years later, I was experiencing similar feelings with Brown having played his final game as an Illini.
While this may sound crazy, what Payton was to the Bears, Brown was to Illinois basketball, at least in my humble opinion.
While Illinois has returned to an elite status with Brad Underwood, nothing will ever compare to that magical time from 2000-2006 when the Illini were as good as anyone in college basketball, with Brown the face of that era.
Damn, Dee Brown was something else, something special!
It was a pleasure watching Dee play for four seasons, knowing that every game he was in an Illinois uniform, the Illini were most likely going to win.
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