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Chicago native Jaylon Tate commits to Illinois

John Groce

FILE - In this March 17, 2012, file photo, Ohio head coach John Groce listens to a question during a news conference at the NCAA college basketball tournament in Nashville, Tenn. An official at the University of Illinois is confirming that the school has hired Groce as its next men’s basketball coach. The official said Groce will be introduced at a news conference Thursday afternoon, March 29, 2012, in Champaign. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)

AP

Illinois has landed their fourth commitment in the Class of 2013.

Jaylon Tate, a point guard who plays for Simeon High School in Chicago, committed while on an official visit to the campus on Thursday evening. He’s the back court mate of Kendrick Nunn, a top 75 recruit nationally, on Simeon and in the Meanstreets AAU program.

Top 100 swingman Malcolm Hill, another Illinois native, and Maverick Morgan round out the class.

Tate’s commitment is a bit of a surprise in that his stock had fallen off over the past year. Tate was a top 100 recruit when he transferred into Simeon, but he found himself playing as the sixth-man on that team. He was receiving mostly mid-major offers throughout much of the spring and the summer, but according to his head coach, Tate’s really come on strong in the fall.

“I think last year coming off the bench and not playing many minutes kind of knocked him out of the radar,” Robert Smith said. “We never questioned his ability. He didn’t have the spring and summer he wanted. He worked hard in the fall. I knew someone would take a chance on him if they saw in the fall. It just paid off for him.”

What may be more important for Illinois head coach than Tate’s commitment is the possibility of building a pipeline to the one of Chicago’s top producers of basketball talent. Nunn and Tate are far from the most famous players currently on the Simeon roster. That award goes to Sports Illustrated coverboy Jabari Parker, the nation’s No. 1 recruit, although Parker cut Illinois from his list over the summer.

Simeon also has a handful of talented underclassmen on their roster, kids that could eventually find their way to the Illini if that becomes the cool place for star Chicagoans to go.

Groce is still chasing five-star guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes, but landing a quality point guard in this class was important for him. The fact that he’s a product of Simeon HS is an added bonus.

Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @robdauster.