Illinois basketball freshman Ethan Brown scored 15 points (against Cincinnati) in his first live action as an Illinois player. He was second on the team with 12 points on Wednesday vs. UIC. As a senior in high school, Brown averaged 24.0 points. Over the course of his career at Rolla High School in Missouri, he scored a program-record 2,523 points.

It obviously wouldn’t be outlandish to characterize Brown as a scorer. The bare-minimum expectation might normally be for Brown to get a fair share of opportunities to showcase his scoring abilities – but will he on this talented Illini squad?

Ethan Brown's maturity and selflessness as a freshman

“Just doing whatever the coaches need from me,” Brown said, after logging four assists in a win against UIC. “Whatever it takes for the team to win. I think I’ve always been kind of a facilitator. I’m not here to score. I obviously know we’ve got a lot of scorers, and I’m just here to get people like Stefan [Vaaks], our veterans, the ball and just let them work.”

That sentiment – “I’m not here to score” – is why Brown is a starter on a team that returns five rotation players from a Final Four run and added one of the best transfers (Vaaks) in the country this offseason.

Brown understands his role and isn’t looking to play outside of it. But he offers the best of both worlds, because he isn’t afraid to score. Brown gets his threes up in a hurry and hits them at a high volume (six in three exhibition games) and rate. He also has a sweet floater in his bag.

The luxury of having a freshman with Brown’s shooting ability, intelligence and awareness of his role (as well as an eagerness to embrace it), cannot be overstated. Brown, regardless of his per-game numbers in 2026-27, may be in for a special season. 

Yet again, Illinois coach Brad Underwood and his staff are showing exactly why they may be the best talent-evaluation crew in the country. Brown was ranked as the No. 226 prospect in the country, per 247Sports’ composite rankings.

Now, in his first year of college hoops, he’ll be a starter on the preseason No. 3 team in the country. Quentin Coleman will dominate the headlines all year long – and he’ll deserve it – among this Illini freshman class. But expect Brown to make a similar impact on winning, even if it’s in a less obvious manner.