The Illinois Fighting Illini have landed one of the prized transfers of the 2026 portal, according to the player's agents.
Former Providence freshman guard Stefan Vaaks has committed to Illinois, according to Excel Sports Management in an ESPN story Sunday. Vaaks is ranked among the top 10 players in the transfer portal by some analytics sites.
He's a 6-foot-7 player from Estonia whose playmaking and offensive versatility are highly rated. He averaged 15.8 points, 3.2 assists and shot 35% from 3-point range for Providence in 2025-26 and earned Big East All-Freshman Team honors.
Vaaks will help fill a void in the Illini backcourt with the departure of Kylan Boswell – his eligibility expired – and freshman sensation Keaton Wagler, who has declared for the NBA Draft and is expected to be a lottery pick.
NEWS: Providence transfer Stefan Vaaks has committed to Illinois, per multiple reportsHe averaged 15.8 PPG, 2.5 RPG and 3.2 APG while earning All-Freshman Team Big East honors this past season pic.twitter.com/4T0ywOp0ti
Vaaks joins an Illinois team that had a significant international presence last season on its roster, including Andrej Stojakovic, Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic, David Mirkovic, Mihailo Petrovic and Toni Bilic.
The latter two have both entered the transfer portal.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Illinois gets highly rated Providence guard via NCAA transfer portal