BTN.com staff, February 7, 2016

Make no mistake, Illinois is struggling on the hardwood. The women's team is 1-11 and in last place, while the men's team is 3-8 and ahead of only winless Minnesota and Rutgers.

[ MORE: Big Ten standings (Men) | Big Ten standings (Women) ]

Illinois men's basketball great and 2005 Big Ten Player of the Year Dee Brown is aware of the struggles, and the special assistant to the director of athletics doesn't want "Illini Nation" to give up on the programs in the wake of another pair of disappointing seasons.

So much so that Brown recently penned a letter to the Illinois community, urging fans to continue to support the programs and have faith.

"In order for us to move forward," Brown writes, "we have to let go of the failures and resentments, and look to the future with a positive attitude."

Read Brown's full letter in the tweet embedded at the top of the post.