Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show
Dee Brown talks Illinois' return to the Final Four, reflects on 2005 Illini run
03 Apr 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
For our next guest, he joins us on Twitch, twitch.tv slash thescorechicago and our hotline. It is the former Illini Guard Big Ten Player of the Year in 2005. First time, first team, all Big Ten in 2005 and 2006. Consensus, first team, All-American, two-time Mr. Basketball in the state of Illinois in 2002. Dee Brown, thank you for joining us today.
All right, thanks for having me. So excited.
We're excited, too, to have the Illini back in the Final Four for the first time since you were there in 2005. 21 years. I know you've spoken a lot about this. Now the head coach over at Roosevelt University. But what has this been like for you, just absorbing this and the memories that have come back during this time?
It's been so exciting, you know, walking around and seeing all the orange and seeing people just happy. You know, I think Illinois basketball is a special place. You know, people love it here in the state of Illinois and around the country. But being here in Chicago, walking around, seeing the joy, seeing the gear, hearing the chants I-L-L, just... It's an unbelievable feeling.
I'm just going to enjoy this moment because I know how hard it is to get here. We have a really good team, a championship roster, so I'm just enjoying it and having a really good time talking about it and everybody bringing up the memories and what Illinois basketball means to them. So it's a great time to be at Atlanta.
Dee, I love that you are a coach and that you have stayed in this game for as long as you have. And I'm just so curious. We have so many more technological advances than we did when you were recruited. Do you have any explanation as to how Keaton Wagler has gone from being so under-recruited to where he is now, given what we have as far as recruiting these days?
I mean, Brad and his staff have done an unbelievable job of identifying talent and guys that can come and play at Illinois and be very successful. I mean, he's an unbelievable talent. I mean, he's a Darren Williams-type point guard that has size and definitely was unrecruited. I mean, not unrecruited, but he wasn't recruited to the highest level that he's supposed to.
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Chapter 2: What does Dee Brown think about Illinois returning to the Final Four?
So he plays with a chip on his shoulder, but... We're able to get really good players at University of Illinois because now we have the money to do it. And we have one of the best fan bases in the country. And when you come there and play there, there's expectation to make it to the Final Four, win Big Ten championships. So there's expectation.
So to get really good players, you know, to come in and do what they do, it's been very exciting to watch.
Dee Brown, it's an absolute blast to have you here on 104.3 The Score. I had the absolute pleasure of covering your run to the Final Four and subsequently to the championship game against North Carolina. And one of the beautiful parts about that run, that postseason, that entire NCAA tournament, was the geography of it. I think the farthest place you guys went was St.
Louis, maybe, because of Indianapolis and Allstate Arena. Right, D? I mean, the geography was beautiful, so you can speak on that. I'm already thinking about Indianapolis, though, and how the Orange is just going to take over as it did with you guys in those first couple of games. I remember being overwhelmed with all the Illini fans that were on those trips with you guys.
Yeah, no doubt. We was in Indy, then went to Chicago, then went to St. Louis. But that was my thing. You know, it was such a heartbreaker. And you got to relive that over and over when people say, you know, we're the best second place team ever because, you know, we lost to the Natty.
But for them to be in Indy and, you know, our practice when I was in school, our practice, you know, had 30,000 fans show up to watch us shoot. I watched their practice yesterday and it was the same. It was all orange. It was ā people love it. You know, I know it's at least ā There's thousands of my buddies that's going to the game.
They're just going to hang out and experience the moment and be around the love and enjoy the moment. I just think we travel. Illinois fans are some of the best in the country. They ain't even close. I always say that. I'm going to say we are the best because there's some crazy fans out there. But we are up there. We love Illinois basketball. We travel well.
And for it to be just two and a half hours away from Chicago ā And the Champaign and Central Illinois area, it's just going to be flooded with orange. And it's going to be beautiful to watch and to see. And people ask me, what do I miss about the game? I don't miss, you know, all the things you got to put your body through.
But I miss the noise, the sound, the smell of popcorn and people just, you know, the chants and the deep of threes. I miss the loud excitement people have when they watch us play basketball. So, Indy is going to be filled with orange and blue. It's going to be amazing. I can't wait to feel the energy and be a part of it.
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Chapter 3: How has coaching influenced Dee Brown's perspective on basketball?
Ayo, one of my favorite players ever at Illinois. When he committed there, he shined some light back at staying at home and going for the home team. I'm happy to see it. I think that Brad has it right where it needs to be. I think he's a lifer. I think he does a great job. When you talk about a guy, that's his dream job. He's done a great job.
Chapter 4: What factors contributed to Illinois' success in recruiting top talent?
It takes a lot to get to Final Four. It takes a lot to win a national championship. But the success he's had, the players he brought in, I'm just happy with the program is and it's exciting to watch. And we love orange and blue. So there's no denying that we are a basketball school. Shout out the football team. Brad and I'm doing an unbelievable job. You know, golf.
I mean, we Josh Whitman has done a great job with all our programs. We, you know, championship level programs, great hires. But men's basketball, Illinois basketball is special. And to see where it is today is just amazing to be a fan. It's amazing to be an alum. And I'm just so happy with the program is today. I really am.
Dee Brown, he is the Roosevelt University head basketball coach here in Chicago, and he's also, of course, a former Illinois guard. Big Ten Player of the Year in 2005, and he joins us here on Rahimi Harrison-Grody ahead of the Final Four, which takes place tomorrow. Dee, I'm going to ask you to put your analyst hat on because I know you've been following this team all year.
What is your biggest concern about this team heading into the Final Four, and what are you most confident in about this team?
We've got to get timely stops. Our defense has got to be locked in. If we're not making shots, our defense has got to be the way it was against Houston. We've got to be dominant on the defensive side no matter if the shots are going in or not. I think our biggest strength is our rebounding. Brad does a great job of controlling glass and You know, we attack the offensive glass at times.
That's our primary offense is getting off the glass after shooting long shots. But I think our shooting and our size, you know, we skilled at every position with that size. So we got skilled players. We can shoot the basketball. I just hope our defense is locked in. If our defense is locked in and once we start making shots, we are tough out each and every night.
With all due respect to the guys on your team, there were not you and Darren Williams. James Augustine and Roger Powell and all those guys were great, but I always knew that it was either going to be you or Darren Williams that was going to hit the big shot in those games. when they needed them. It seems like this version of an Illinois Final Four team has many guys that can show up.
We know that Keaton Wagler is the man, but there's also David Mirkovic and Andrei Stojakovic. What he has done, it seems like it can be somebody different every night with this Illini team, unlike the team that you guys were on in 2005.
Well, we're only going to talk about the 26 team. You're absolutely right. They have a lot of guys. Every guy is important. Every guy needs to show up and do their job. And they do have multiple guys they can go through. I would just tell you guys, if you ever look back at our run, James Augustine won us the Nevada game. Roger Powell won us the Louisville game by themselves.
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