Another key contributor for Illinois basketball enters the transfer portal: what it means for the Illini
March Madness: Illini's season ends with loss to Kentucky
What happens now that the Illini's season is over?
For the second day in a row, Illinois basketball has reportedly lost a key contributor.
Wing player Tre White, who came to the Illini after playing at two different schools in his first two years of college basketball, will enter the transfer portal, according to ESPN.
White was a consistent scoring player and a reliable option outside of the Illini's top offensive options of Tomislav Ivisic, Kylan Boswell and Kasparas Jakučionis.
"I'm fiery right now," White said after the Illini's NCAA Tournament second-round loss to Kentucky. "I feel like I can go play another game."
White enters the transfer portal one day after freshman forward Morez Johnson Jr. entered the portal.
White enters the portal
White started 31 of 32 games for Illinois this season. He averaged 10.5 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per game as a 6-foot-7 forward.
He also shot just over 50 percent from the field.
This means White will be looking for his fourth team in four years.
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What it means for Illinois basketball
Of all the players on Illinois' roster, Tomislav Ivisic, Morez Johnson Jr., Tre White and Kylan Boswell were expected to be back in Champaign for the 2025-2026 season.
Those players knew how important that was for a core to return, too.
"I think if majority of the team comes back, everyone's going to be year experienced, year older," Ivisic said. "That means a lot in the NCAA Tournament."
Underwood echoed that sentiment.
"It's one of the challenges of getting older is having carryover in your program," Underwood said. "Young man from Iowa – he spent four years there – I hope that's the case with certain guys. I think we will have conversations with guys and see where it's at. It's a complicated process in today's world."
It just got a bit more complicated for Illinois now.
White was an experienced player who came to Illinois this season. Not only was he consistent this season, he said was planning on returning for the 2025-2026 season.
"I can't even put it into words," White said. "I know we got a good group of returning guys, but it's just going to be a great summer full of work and I'm excited to bring this pain into next year."
Granted, this is the world of college basketball.
The transfer portal comes for all teams, even when they least expect it. That seems to be the case for the Illini now, who are already expecting to lose star players in Jakučionis and Will Riley.
Illinois does have two commitments from four-star high school players Keaton Wagler and Brandon Lee. However, the transfer portal will be the best bet if the Illini want to reconstruct a productive core that aims for a lengthy NCAA Tournament run in the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
Still, after Underwood's comments following the end of their season regarding the need for retention, White's departure, following Johnson's departure, shows how much of a struggle retention can be and can also raise some questions as to how Illinois goes about retention in an era where the only certain thing is NIL.