photo by: Charles Rex Arbogast/AP

Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. shoots a free throw during an NCAA college basketball game against Colgate Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023, in Champaign, Illinois.

Former University of Illinois basketball player Terrence Shannon Jr. was picked in the first round of the NBA Draft on Wednesday night. The Minnesota Timberwolves selected him at No. 27 overall.

Shannon averaged 23 points and was a third-team All-American for the Illini during the 2023-24 season, which was his fifth year of college basketball overall after he started his career at Texas Tech.

Shannon was found not guilty of rape by a Douglas County jury on June 13.

His trial stemmed from an alleged incident at the Jayhawk Cafe in early September when Shannon was in Lawrence for the Kansas-Illinois football game. A woman accused him of grabbing her by the buttocks, then sexually assaulting her under her skirt.

Shannon had been charged with rape in December and initially suspended by Illinois, but obtained an injunction after missing six games so that he could continue to play for the remainder of the season.

He led Illinois to the Elite Eight before its loss to eventual national champion UConn.