Brad Underwood talks recruiting European players, Illini culture and more!

Summary

Eye On College Basketball: Brad Underwood Interview (October 9, 2025)

Main Theme & Purpose

In this episode, Gary Parrish sits down with Illinois head coach Brad Underwood during Big Ten Media Day. The conversation dives into the Illini’s current program culture, the intentionality behind recruiting European players, youth basketball development differences, insights into the use of personality testing in recruiting, and broader philosophical reflections on consistency and the coach’s role as a mentor. The tone is candid and insightful, offering a close look at how Underwood has navigated nine eventful years in college basketball.

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Detailed Breakdown

1. Building Consistency in a Changing Sport

[02:07–03:17]

• Adapting to Change: Underwood attributes his program's consistent NCAA tournament appearances amidst the sport’s flux to embracing, not resisting, change.
  • “Just accept it, relish it, look forward to it. It’s been a great challenge … It keeps me young, it keeps me thinking different.” (Underwood, 02:29)
• Core Values: Despite change, Illinois' program values—good character, toughness, and work ethic—remain steadfast.
  • “The core values of our program have never changed. We still want good people, high character, toughness…” (Underwood, 02:55)

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2. European Recruiting Philosophy

[03:17–04:23]

• Intentional Shift to International Players: Underwood details how Illinois made recruiting European players a core pillar.
  • Praises staff connectivity (notably Orlando Antigua and Jeff Alexander) with FIBA and international basketball circles.
  • NIL changes made it easier to pursue overseas talent.
• Why European Players: Lauds their comprehensive skills (dribbling, passing, shooting) and strong, structured coaching backgrounds.
  • “Arguably the best players in the NBA are European players ... they’re very well coached. They love to work.” (Underwood, 03:55)

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3. Youth Basketball Development: U.S. vs. Europe

[04:23–06:39]

• Developmental Differences: Underwood and Parrish compare the American focus on game volume with the European emphasis on skill work.
  • “We play a lot, we don’t practice that much.” (Parrish, 04:42)
  • “They might have two games a week maybe, but their development in their youth is extraordinary.” (Underwood, 04:43)
• Observation from Abroad: Underwood recalls his experience at a Belgrade clinic, impressed by discipline and teaching at all levels.
• Reflections on U.S. Development: Underwood reminisces about more skill-driven camps in the past, suggests the shift to game-heavy AAU schedules may hurt skill growth:
  • “Now we’re just playing games... we might have two or three practices if you’re lucky, and your AAU team plays 50 or 60 games.” (Underwood, 06:27)

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4. Roster & Injury Updates

[06:39–07:51]

• Andre Stojakovic Injury: The transfer has been out five weeks with a knee sprain, but prognosis is positive.
• Chemistry Challenges: Three key players (including two Europeans) haven’t been together on court yet, presenting a chemistry hurdle.
  • “Depends how you look at it ... maybe a little bit in chemistry. I don’t have a good feel for Andre on the court, what that looks like yet.” (Underwood, 07:25)
• Coach’s Confidence: Stresses maturity and basketball IQ of his European newcomers will smooth the adjustment.

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5. A Unique Interaction: "Don’t Delay Gratitude" Letter

[07:51–11:01]

• Memorable Story: Underwood shares a moving story—an opposing Big Ten player hand-delivered a three-page thank-you letter across the country, reflecting on how Illinois’ program influenced him.
  • “It wasn’t meant to be about me, but … that our impact is still about helping young people reach their dreams.” (Underwood, 09:59)
• On Coaching Impact: Underwood underscores the sometimes-unseen, deep influence coaches have.
• Old-Fashioned Appreciation: Parrish and Underwood marvel at the player’s choice to handwrite and personally deliver the letter:
  • “Didn’t put it in a text. Didn’t put it in an email. Right. Handwritten and delivered it halfway across the country.” (Underwood, 10:52)

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6. Staying Grounded: No News, No Social Media

[11:01–12:22]

• Cutting Distractions: Underwood intentionally avoids news and social media for focus and happiness.
  • “I don’t want to waste my mental time … It’s very hard to do our job and do it … the right way and keep relationships, especially the social media side.” (Underwood, 11:25)
  • “I became happy when I didn’t have it … I think I’m comfortable with who I am and I know what’s truly important to me.” (Underwood, 11:50)

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7. Culture, Character & Personality Testing in Recruiting

[12:22–13:47]

• Recruiting to Culture: The Illini program uses character assessment and personality testing, inspired by NBA practices.
  • “The transfer portal is speed dating ... Let’s gather as much info as we can.” (Underwood, 13:04)
• Values Sought: Trustworthiness, loyalty, competitiveness, and willingness to work are traits prioritized.
  • “All those values come out in this. I think character wins. And we’ve doubled down on that.” (Underwood, 13:39)

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8. Defining Success and Big Ten Brotherhood

[13:47–15:56]

• Season Goals: Ultimate aim: a national championship, but daily improvement and embracing “the process” are key.
  • “I want a team that falls in love with the process ... enjoy the work.” (Underwood, 14:12)
• On the Big Ten's Title Drought: Underwood believes coaches root for each other in the NCAA Tournament:
  • “I think it’s one of the special things about this league ... I want, I want us to beat every conference and I want us to do it in a bad way.” (Underwood, 15:23)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• Brad Underwood on change and consistency:
  “Try not to complain about it and get weighed down by that side of things. But ... the core values of our program have never changed.” (02:55)
• On European recruiting:
  “I like guys who can dribble, pass and shoot and they’re very well coached.” (03:55)
• On youth coaching in Europe:
  “Doesn’t matter if you’re 7’1’’ or you’re 5’10’’, you’re getting that same instruction.” (04:58)
• On the gratitude letter:
  “The letter was three pages and it was ... his views of our program and how they helped him, made him better. It was titled ‘Don’t Delay Gratitude.’” (08:20)
• On living without social media:
  “I became happy when I didn’t have it ... I think I’m comfortable with who I am and I know what’s truly important to me and I just don’t need it.” (11:40)
• On personality testing for recruits:
  “The transfer portal is speed dating ... let’s gather as much info as we can.” (13:04)
• On what he wants for his team:
  “I want a team that falls in love with the process. I want them to enjoy the process, enjoy the work.” (14:12)
• On Big Ten camaraderie:
  “I think we got a group of coaches who are all on the same page doing the same things and pulling for each other.” (15:49)

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Key Timestamps

• [02:07] – Interview begins: Consistency at Illinois
• [03:17] – Recruiting European players
• [04:23] – European youth basketball philosophy
• [06:39] – Stojakovic injury update
• [07:51] – The ‘Don’t Delay Gratitude’ player letter story
• [11:01] – No social media or news
• [12:22] – Character and personality tests in recruiting
• [13:47] – Season goals for Illinois and Underwood’s definition of success
• [15:23] – Big Ten coaches rooting for each other

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Episode Summary

Coach Brad Underwood’s interview is a testament to unwavering program culture amid college basketball’s transformation. His insights into European player recruitment, youth development, and team chemistry provide a roadmap for sustained success. The show’s highlight—a heartfelt letter from a rival player—humanizes coaching beyond wins and losses. Underwood’s avoidance of digital distractions and strategic personality profiling underscore his reflective, modern approach to program building. For any fan of college basketball or leadership in changing times, this is an essential listen.

Transcript

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[Gary Parrish]

Hey there. Gary Parrish. Welcome back to the CBS Sports Ion College Basketball podcast where we sometimes discuss camel fighting, dodo birds and leaky black. If you're watching on YouTube, you know what to do to the like button shouts to Brandon Davies. And if you haven't yet subscribed to the CBS Sports college basketball YouTube channel, please also do that while you're here. Let's get into it. Different deal today. As you'll soon realize, Matt Norlander is not here with me. And that's because I'm in Chicago for Big Ten Media day. And while here, I sat down with most of the coaches and some of the players for quick conversations about their programs and college basketball in general. And we figured, or at least we hoped that, that you guys might like to listen to those conversations. So we're placing them in the I own College Basketball feed. It's me, GP at Big Ten media day. The conversations I had with coaches and players, they are on tap. I hope you enjoy them. Right after this word from our partners.

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[Gary Parrish]

Learn [e-mail] Gary Parrish here with Illinois head coach Brad Underwood. Brad, this is year nine at Illinois. You've now made five straight NCAA tournaments, incredible levels of success. While the sport has changed in dramatic ways, how have you been able to maintain consistency when there's been very little consistency in college basketball?

[Brad Underwood]

I think just accept it, relish it, look forward to it. It's been a great challenge from this side of things. It's helped invigorate me. It keeps me young, it keeps me thinking Different. Try not to complain about it and get weighed down by that side of things. But you know, I think that.

[Gary Parrish]

The.

[Brad Underwood]

Core values of our program have never changed. So we've never, we've never gotten away from that. And we still want good people, we still want high character, we still want toughness, we still want people not afraid to work and, and yet just molded it with, with those type of guys and those backgrounds and, and it's workforce.

[Gary Parrish]

You've had success with European players. Now you have a roster filled with European players. How intentional is that? Explain to me how Illinois ended up recruiting in this way.

[Brad Underwood]

Very. Again. And I go back early on, I've always loved international guys. Orlando, Antigua. My staff very tied in with fiba. Very tied in, in, in, in. In world basketball. We had them, they just weren't the names then. And Nil has helped open those doors. But in the meantime, Jeff Alexander. Alexander, especially with Winau left. Now he's back. We've worked very hard at developing relationships over there. And I think our style of play, I think our development, all of those things have been very key for us. The trends of the NBA. Arguably the best players in the NBA are European players. I like that. I like guys who can dribble, pass and shoot and they're very well coached. They have tremendous passion for the game. They love to work. Just been a great fit.

[Gary Parrish]

Greg Guard talked a lot about similar things earlier today and seemed to suggest that there may be issues with just the developmental process in the United States of America. I see this with my own children, whether it's basketball or baseball. We play a lot, we don't practice that much.

[Brad Underwood]

Yeah, they're just the opposite.

[Gary Parrish]

Yeah, right.

[Brad Underwood]

They're just the opposite. They might have two games a week maybe, but. But their development in their youth is extraordinary. And the coaching is extraordinary. I went to Belgrade to do a clinic and was just blown away at the coaching. And it was Euroleague coaches, but it was also some youth coaches. And they're very, very disciplined, very structured, and I like that. And you see why they're so good at the big three, as I call them, dribbling, passing and shooting. It doesn't matter if you're 7:1 or you're 5, 10, you're getting that, that same instruction. And they're very good at it.

[Gary Parrish]

I don't know that any one person in our country has the power to change the way we do youth basketball. But is that something broadly speaking we should be looking at? Because you're exactly right. You look at the best players in the NBA and they are largely born outside of the United States. And now college basketball programs are prioritizing international players as well. Do we need to look at how we're doing things at the youth level?

[Brad Underwood]

Well, I think we used to have it. We used to have it. When I was growing up, it was camps and it was, it was morning drill stations and, and you know, back, I go back to the old five star days and it was, it was college coaches coaching and you know, I can remember Digger Phelps being coach and you had Mike Fratello and just on down the Pete Gillen and, and, and we used to have that. That's where all the best players went, were the camps. You learned to compete, you learned middles of the game at a very young age. And, and now we're just playing games. I mean we might have two or three practices if you're lucky, and your AAU team plays 50 or 60 games. I'm not sure that's wrong, but I'm not, I'm not sure it's also helping in the development of young people.

[Gary Parrish]

One of your newcomers is Andre Stojakovic, who I gather has been sidelined for a while with a knee sprain of sort. Update me on his situation.

[Brad Underwood]

Yeah, he's had a, he's had a knee sprain. Right. Five weeks ago and so could have been worse.

[Gary Parrish]

Yeah.

[Brad Underwood]

And, and we're thankful it was not. But yeah, he's, he's, he's developing. He's got a, he's got some more doctor appointments tomorrow and then we hope to start working him slowly back in. I don't know what it will look like for our, you know, our scrimmage and our exhibition, but, but thank goodness it wasn't too bad. But. And then we had two of the European guys, we didn't have it all summer, so those three have not been on the court together one day.

[Gary Parrish]

Does you behind a little bit?

[Brad Underwood]

Depends how you look at it. Right? I think the one thing with our point guard, Mihailo, little older. Andre's been in college, he's got 60 plus games under his belt. You know, it, it, it's, it's, it's maybe a little bit in chemistry. I don't have a good feel for Andre on the court, what that looks like yet.

[Gary Parrish]

But.

[Brad Underwood]

They'Re cerebral, they're smart, they'll pick it up pretty quick.

[Gary Parrish]

I was reading earlier about a speaking engagement you recently had and you told a story about an opposing Big ten player writing you a letter and hand delivering it to you. And I Don't think I've ever heard a story like that. Can you tell me that story?

[Brad Underwood]

Me either. Yeah. I'm going to leave him his name out. But it's, it was a cross country trip to deliver me a handwritten letter. And you know, sometimes you, we lose perspective as to what our value is and what we're doing and you want to make sure it's right. And the letter was three pages and it was, it was his views of our program and how they helped him, made him better. And it was, it was, it was titled Don't Delay Gratitude and just the thoughts of a, of a player you don't coach every day but, but for the outside. You, you competed against him for quite some time, had tremendous respect. The little things I remember walking through the line, he brings us up and telling him after a game, you're one of my favorite players in the league and how powerful coaches words are. Because that was something that meant a great deal to him. But he was shaking in just being there. We invited him, he was going to leave, just drop it off, have a 5, 10 minute conversation with me and leave. He got out the door and we brought him back, got him a hotel, spent the next morning with us, had breakfast with us, had watched our workout. Very impactful. It meant a lot to me because it's not some player who sometimes says the right things because they're kissing your butt.

[Gary Parrish]

Right.

[Brad Underwood]

This was very genuine, very heartfelt and very gratifying for me that we're doing a lot of things right, I would imagine.

[Gary Parrish]

I don't want to speak for you, but that, that has to mean as much to you as anything else that could happen to you in your career.

[Brad Underwood]

That's, it's, that's why I read it. And it's not about, it was not meant to be about me, but it was meant to be for mentors, for coaches, that our impact is still about helping young people reach their dreams and goals and that we're doing it right and it's okay to be disciplined and have accountability and responsibility and, and yeah, that, that was pretty powerful for me.

[Gary Parrish]

And for a young person to recognize.

[Brad Underwood]

Brilliant.

[Gary Parrish]

Yeah. Because I, I would not have it that age. I, I have, as I've aged and gotten older, sort of better understood the importance of, you know, telling people how you feel about them and, and, and what they mean to you. I don't know that I was always great at that. But for this young man to recognize it at such a young age and to go quite literally out of his Way just to. To. To tell you those things is really amazing.

[Brad Underwood]

Well, take it a step further. Didn't put it in a text. Yeah. Didn't put it in an email. Right. Handwritten and delivered it halfway across the country.

[Gary Parrish]

Incredible.

[Brad Underwood]

And my hat's off to that young man. He'll always have a very special place.

[Gary Parrish]

I'm glad you got to experience that. As I was reading through that, you made a point in the speaking engagement to point out that you don't read newspapers, you don't watch the news, you aren't on social media. You called yourself maybe the most uninformed human on the planet. It sounds incredible. How do you do it? Teach me.

[Brad Underwood]

Yeah. I just have chosen not to get involved with that. There's so much stuff that doesn't. I don't want to waste my mental time with. It's very hard to do our job and do it what I think is the right way and keep relationships and especially the social media side. I've learned I would always pick up my phone or look at it when I had it. And so I'm supposed to be watching tape. And so it was just. And then I became happy when I didn't have it. And I don't need to read the news. I don't need to hear people talk, good or bad about me. I don't need that dopamine rush. So I just. I think I'm comfortable with who I am and I know what's truly important to me and I just don't need it. So I don't do it.

[Gary Parrish]

You mentioned earlier about the culture within your program. Um, and you.

[Brad Underwood]

You.

[Gary Parrish]

You don't just develop that once the players get there. You. You recruit to it. And I know that you guys in recruiting use personality testing sometimes. Tell me more about that.

[Brad Underwood]

Yeah. It's become a huge piece for us. Character. There's so many things that are. Are available to us. It started because of the NBA teams.

[Gary Parrish]

Yeah.

[Brad Underwood]

NBA teams come in and they do background checks on players. And. And I said, well, if they're doing it and they want to know who they're getting ready to pay and they. And what their likes and dislikes and who's coming into their room. Why would we not do that? We need more information. The transfer portal is speed dating.

[Gary Parrish]

Yeah.

[Brad Underwood]

And so let's gather as much info as we can. We now have a whole group of people working on. On that side of things from a talent standpoint. But let's find out who they are. And. And it gives us that. It gives me Great, great ways to talk to people, find out what's important. I find out if they're selfish, if they're a team oriented guy, if they're a tough, if they, a competitor, if they're a worker, if they're trustworthy, if they're loyal. All those values come out in this. And those are all things that I've said many times. I think character wins. And we've doubled down on that last thing.

[Gary Parrish]

Obviously, I mentioned you've been to five straight NCAA tournaments. You're expected to go to a six straight. Given the, the talent on the roster, what does success look like for you this upcoming season?

[Brad Underwood]

You know, that's always a hard question for me. I, I, I think that when you play in the Big Ten, I'm there to win a national championship. I'm trying. And, and, and I mean, that's, that's a goal. I think that I want a team that falls in love with the process. I want them to enjoy the process, enjoy the work. Sometimes I get it. When you play at this level, the other team might have a few more points. And I thought we were a final four team. Two years ago. We just happened to run into UConn in the elite eight and they were that good. That's a tribute to Danny. But, you know, we're going to go out and do our best every single, every single game. You've got to have a little bit of luck in the NCAA tournament and, but winning a national championship is ultimately what I think almost every coach that will be here today is, is aiming for you playing a great conference. We should be that, but I think it's within the realm. Just got to continue to work day by day to get better.

[Gary Parrish]

The big bullet point everybody points to every year until it, you know, happens is that the Big Ten hasn't won a national championship since 2000. I know each of you want it for yourselves and for your programs and your schools and your alums. Is this the type of league where coaches want it for each other? In other words, Illinois, you chase in a national title, you get eliminated in the Elite Eight. But there's other Big Ten schools at the Final Four. Are you rooting for them?

[Brad Underwood]

Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. I think it's one of the special things about this league is we're, the group of coaches are very connected, and I think there's, at least I am, I'm being, I'm pulling for everybody. I want, I want us to beat every conference and I want us to do it in a bad way. But you know, that's that's me speaking. So I think that's the case. I think we got a group of coaches who are all on the same page doing the same things and pulling for each other.

[Gary Parrish]

Hey, congrats on all your success. I appreciate your time today.

[Brad Underwood]

Thank you.

[Gary Parrish]

Appreciate it.

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