Halfway through the collegiate season, Kasparas Jakucionis looked like a lock to be a top-5 pick in the upcoming NBA draft.
A 6-foot-5 point guard from Lithuania with an advanced pick-and-roll game, Jakucionis was averaging 16.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game through the middle of January, shooting 50% from the field and 41.6% from 3-point range as he led Illinois to a 12-3 start.
But the last two months of the season were a struggle, both for Jakucionis individually and for the Fighting Illini as a team, who limped down the stretch, finishing with just a .500 record over their final 18 games, with Jakucionis himself shooting just 39% from the field and a dreadful 23.7% from 3...
