Abrams chooses Illinois

Mount Carmel’s Tracy Abrams brings the ball up court against Brother Rice.
(Scott Powers/For the Sun-Times News Group)

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The state’s Class of 2011 is extremely well-regarded nationally, with as many as five players expected to rank in the top 100 in the country.

Thursday at Mount Carmel, Illinois coach Bruce Weber became the first coach in the country to claim one of the prizes, as 5-11 guard Tracy Abrams gave an oral commitment to Illinois.

“Illinois was my first offer and the only offer I got so far,” Abrams said. “It made me feel like they really wanted me. I spent a lot of time with [Illinois assistant coach] Jerrance Howard and he made me feel comfortable, I had a great time there.”

Abrams’ commitment should prove that Weber’s success with the 2010 class wasn’t a fluke, and set the foundation for a blockbuster recruiting class in 2011.

“Abrams is a Pied Piper type with that group in 2011,” recruiting analyst Joe Henricksen said. “Everyone in that class talks about how they want to play with Tracy Abrams. He’s got the personality, the character and all the intangibles that just make this a huge get for Illinois.”

Other stars in the 2011 class include De La Salle’s Michael Shaw, Curie’s Wayne Blackshear and Young’s Sam Thompson.

“It has started what I think will be a huge domino effect with how the rest of the 2011 class falls into place for the Illini,” recruiting analyst Roy Schmidt said. “When the first one pulls the trigger it can often get others to follow”

Henricksen has Abrams rated as the top player in the state’s 2011 class.

“I’ve had him number one since June,” Henricksen said. “There isn’t much separation between the top three or four guys in the class, but to me it’s his intangibles and toughness that sets Abrams apart.”

Abrams rose to prominence in the playoffs last season. As a freshman, he led Mount Carmel to three consecutive playoff upsets, as the Caravan beat Farragut, De La Salle and Young to win the Proviso East Sectional.

“He showed fearlessness as a freshman,” Henricksen said. “He came up big when it counted in March and was able to lead a team. It shows the character of the kid.”

Kentucky, Indiana, DePaul, Tennessee and UCLA had also expressed interest in Abrams, who feels that Weber is a good fit for him.

“He’s just like [Mount Carmel coach Mike] Flaherty,” Abrams said. “He’s really alive. He’s going to make you work hard and not settle. [At Mount Carmel] I have to run whenever I do anything wrong and I’m sure it is the same way with Coach Weber. He wants you to get better. Coach Flaherty teaches you, he doesn’t discourage you and I think that has made me improve so I wanted to have a coach like that in college too.”

According to Abrams, Illinois didn’t show much interest in him until the end of the summer.

“Illinois made up a lot of ground in a short time to get Abrams,” Henricksen said. “Last March Illinois was not there. Credit [Illinois assistant coach] Jerrance Howard with really closing this up quickly.