After steady improvement in each of his four seasons with Illinois, forward Coleman Hawkins will enter the NCAA transfer portal as a graduate transfer looking for a new home in his final year of eligibility – according to CBS’ Matt Norlander.
Hawkins had the best season of his college career as a senior in 2023-24, stepping out as an outside shooter and opening up Brad Underwood’s offense by knocking down 36.9% of his three point attempts – a far cry from the 28% rate he carried as a junior.
Hawkins’ growth as a shooter led to a career-high in points per game (12.1) and he tacked on 6.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.1 blocks while helping to lead the Illini to a strong finish in the Big Ten and a three seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Hawkins is also in the NBA draft process, where he says his focus remains for now, and has not ruled out a return to Illinois for what would be his fifth year in Champaign.
Relax, lol pic.twitter.com/FfOAf7VeQV
— Coleman Hawkins (@colehawk23) April 30, 2024
If he were to look for another school there will be a huge list of suitors, and a move closer to his hometown of Sacramento could be in the cards at places like Arizona, USC, or UCLA.