This was just posted on the Illinois Rivals site:
As widely reported on Twitter and elsewhere on Tuesday, Illinois appears to be back in the hunt for 2016 point guard
Charlie Moore from Chicago Morgan Park.
Moore originally signed with Memphis, but he opened things back up when Tigers’ head coach Josh Pastner departed for Georgia Tech earlier this month.
He now has a list of 10 schools that he will choose from: Vanderbilt, Iowa, SMU, DePaul, Illinois, Miami (Fla.), Western Kentucky, California, UNLV, and Georgia Tech.
With the spring signing period coming to an end on May 18, a final decision could be coming very soon for Moore.
“Probably in the next week or so,” Moore said about his pending decision.
The 5-foot-11 Moore is a 4-star prospect and the No. 54 player in nation according to Rivals.com. He was selected Mr. Basketball in the state of Illinois following a great senior season at Morgan Park.
Though small in stature, Moore put up big time stats, averaging 28 points, seven assists and five steals per game during his senior season. He could provide some instant offense for the Illini should he choose to don the orange and blue.
Since he obtained his release from Memphis, speculation has run rampant on whether Illinois would once again get involved with Moore.
That question was answered when the Illini staff paid Moore a visit last week.
“Coach Groce and Coach Parham came,” Moore said. “They talked about me putting on that Illinois jersey and showing where I’m from, representing the state of Illinois.”
Groce also reportedly sold Moore on the possibility of running in the backcourt with signed point guard
Te’Jon Lucas, a 3-star point guard from Milwaukee (Wisc.) Washington.
Lucas is the lone recruit for Illinois in the class of 2016. The Illini also have veteran point guard Tracy Abrams returning from injury this fall.
Illinois was one of the schools who were coming after Moore the hardest before he committed to Memphis in November. Time will tell, but Moore does seem bought in to what Groce is selling.
“It’s a great program,” Moore said. “It’s my home state school, so it’s a great opportunity for me to come in right away and contribute and try to make the tournament.”
The plan now, according to Moore, is to take two visits before making his decision, but he isn’t ready to name what schools he will check out.
He does have a strong idea of what he’s now looking for in the school where he will continue his playing career at the next level.
“Somewhere where I feel comfortable and I have a great relationship with the coaches, and they have a great relationship with my family,” he said.