Brandin Podziemski to Illinois

Brandin Podziemski has announced his commitment to the Illinois Fighting Illini. Kentucky, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt and Miami were among his other finalists.

A 4-star Class of 2021 recruit, Podziemski plays at St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy (WI). On the AAU circuit, the 6-6 Podziemski ran with the same program associated with former Wildcat and current Heat star Tyler Herro, also a Wisconsin native.

Podziemski was first offered a scholarship by Kentucky back in October of 2020. At the time, he was an under-the-radar recruit whose stock was just starting to trend upwards, enough that John Calipari offered a scholarship in hopes that ascension would continue.

While Podziemski did have a nice senior season that led to him rising up to the No. 72 overall ranking in the 2021 class via 247 Sports, it’s safe to say he didn’t quite reach the level Kentucky hoped for, especially after the disaster of a season they just endured.

That’s led to Kentucky making a priority to land impact guards via the transfer portal, something they’ve already accomplished once by getting Davidson guard Kellan Grady.

While Podziemski would have been a nice multi-year player, it’s clear that Calipari wants more veterans in his backcourt next season compared to recruits.

Best of luck Podziemski as he looks to become the latest success story for an Illinois program that’s become a force to be reckoned with.

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