He may have only been in Champaign for one season, but sharpshooter Keaton Wagler won over countless hearts among the Illinois fanbase. There were so many highs for him during his freshman campaign and now he's ready to make people even more proud once the NBA Draft arrives.
Andrej Stojakovic gave Illinois fans hope with cryptic NBA Draft Combine comment
Before Wagler does make the jump to the pros, he won't hesitate in reminiscing about what he was able to get done with the Big Ten side. While at the NBA Draft Combine, he was asked about his 46-point performance against Purdue, a showing no one has forgotten about. Wagler's answer to things is sure to make you smile:
"Just a killer's mentality," Wagler said of that game vs. the Boilermakers. "Our second leading scorer at the time Kylan (Boswell) was out and I knew Purdue was one of the best offensive teams in the country and we were going to have to score a lot of points in that game. I just went in there with the mindset to do what I do: be aggressive, take shots. I saw the bigs switching and I knew I could get to my spot each time and shots were falling. I just continued to stay confident and be aggressive. My teammates trusted me enough to keep giving me the ball and it all worked out."
Keaton Wagler talks about his time at Illinois, putting up 46 at Purdue & playing with Kylan Boswell#illini x #NBA pic.twitter.com/1yipQ7mvVX
— 🆃ⓐ🅹🅷 ♕ (@Recru1t1ng_Guru) May 12, 2026
Keaton Wagler is doing himself a ton of favors at the 2026 NBA Draft Combine
Anyone else ready to run through a wall after seeing that quote from Wagler? The youngster indeed looked brilliant against Purdue and that wasn't the only contest he was a stud in. On the season, the 6-6, 180-pounder averaged 17.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. It felt like whenever Brad Underwood needed him to step up with a big shot, Wagler was ready to do so.
This is something NBA scouts are of course paying attention to as well. Despite being a baby-faced freshman, Wagler was electric for Illinois and he's turning heads at the Combine as well. Wagler feels like a lock to be a Top 10 pick, as he's oozing with potential.
In a new post-lottery NBA Mock Draft from ESPN, Jeremy Woo has Wagler going No. 5 overall to the Los Angeles Clippers. That'd be great to see, as Wagler could no question be a game-changer for the Western Conference side in the same way he was for the Fighting Illini.
Illinois went on a dream run in the NCAA Tournament, reaching the Final Four. Despite the loss to UConn, it took nothing away from what this group was able to get done, including Wagler. Coming out of high school, he was a 3-star prospect per the 247Sports Composite rankings.
He went ahead and played at a 5-star level, lighting up the hardwood whenever he suited up. Replacing his production next season is not going to be easy at all for Underwood and Illinois, but fans will be ready to watch him put on a show in the NBA on a consistent basis - and he'll be ready to bring that killer's mentality with him to wherever he moves next.
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