Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins withdraws from 2024 NBA Draft, enters NCAA Transfer Portal

Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins officially withdrew his name from the 2024 NBA Draft on Wednesday evening. He relayed the news to The Field of 68. And he also officially entered the NCAA Transfer Portal.

According to Aaron Torres, his agent has already reached out to let schools know he’s looking for a pay day on par with Great Osobor (reported $2 million).

The senior averaged 12.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last season, boosting Illinois on a historic run to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. The Fighting Illini lost to UConn in the postseason as their season came to an end. Against the Huskies, he only had five points and four rebounds. Hawkins stuffed the stat sheet with double digits against the other three teams they faced in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Iowa State (12 points), Duquesne (11 points), and Morehead State (10 points).

Illinois basketball finished with a 29-9 overall record, finishing second in the Big Ten Conference in the regular season. They went on an impressive run in the postseason, defeating Wisconsin in the 2024 Big Ten Tournament Championship. It was the Fighting Illini’s second conference tournament title in four seasons and their fourth all-time.

Coleman Hawkins is a versatile big man who can score in a variety of ways. He signed with Illinois as a three-star recruit and the No. 151 overall player in the country in the class of 2020, per the On3 Industry rankings.

As a freshman in 2020-21, Coleman Hawkins played in 25 games, averaging 6 minutes per game. In 2021-22, Hawkins saw his role increase. He played in 33 games, including making 14 starts. That season, he averaged 5.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.

During the 2022-23 season, as a junior, Hawkins moved into a prominent position with Illinois. He averaged 9.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, ranking third in the team in scoring and leading the Fighting Illini in rebounding.

This past season he had his best year yet, averaging double figures in scoring for the first time. Now, Hawkins will look to capitalize on his success and take the next step in his journey.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire.

The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.

On3’s Matt Connolly also contributed to this article.