Jabari Parker to miss Simeon's opener with injury

Simeon begins their quest for a fourth straight Illinois state title on Saturday night against Milton (Ga.) in the Chicago Elite Classic at UIC, but the Wolverines will be doing so without Jabari Parker. The Wolverines' star senior is still dealing with a stress fracture in his right foot and has yet to be cleared by doctors.

While Simeon will certainly miss Parker, coach Robert Smith's team is still loaded with talent. Standout seniors Kendrick Nunn and Jaylon Tate are both committed to John Groce at Illinois, while senior Kendall Pollard is committed to Dayton. Pollard says playing without Parker should be no big deal, via CSN Chicago:

"It's not going to be tough playing without Jabari. We're used to it - we played without him all summer," said senior Kendall Pollard who's committed to play his college ball at Dayton next season. "But he'll be on the bench to cheer us on, so it'll be good to seem him there."

Parker broke his foot back in July and is unsure when he will be ready to get back on the court. His junior season, he was named Illinois' Mr. Basketball and national Gatorade Player of the Year. He averaged 19.5 points, 8.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 3.3 blocks. Parker is currently the consensus No. 2 player in the 2013 recruiting class behind Andrew Wiggins.

Parker recently stated that he will be attending college in 2013 rather than going on a Mormon mission. He's currently deciding between Duke, Michigan State, Florida, BYU and Stanford.