When taken in total, the events that have transpired since the Wisconsin basketball team exited March Madness with a whimper are about as close to the worst-case scenario as one could have envisioned.
After a 22-14 finish against one of the nation’s toughest schedules that earned them a 5-seed in the Big Dance, a roster positioned to compete for a Big Ten title in 2024-25 has since been decimated.
Wisconsin basketball fans knew it was coming, but sophomore wing AJ Storr declared for the NBA Draft while maintaining eligibility. Days later, he entered the transfer portal and went to the highest bidder, Kansas.
It appeared as though the Badgers had a viable replacement option in Omaha forward Frankie Fidler. The 6-foot-7 junior was a high school teammate of Chucky Hepburn and averaged 20.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. At one point, Wisconsin was considered the frontrunner in this recruitment until a visit to Michigan State compelled him to push back his commitment announcement.
Then came the gut punch Wisconsin basketball fans weren’t expecting, as Hepburn entered the transfer portal despite his professed loyalty to the Badgers, presumably eyeing a lucrative opportunity elsewhere. That loss opened up a need for a point guard on coach Gard’s shopping list while also taking them out of the Fidler sweepstakes. Fidler later announced that he would be joining Tom Izzo in East Lansing.
“We have a lot of love for Chucky,” Gard said. “He’s been a big part of our program. In today’s college basketball, players are making transactional decisions all over the country at every level. …“There’s no time to complain about the system in place. We’re dedicating all of our energy right now into finding the next fits for our program.
“In fact, minutes after talking to Chucky about this, I was already pursuing another talented point guard who is in the portal. This is the reality of college basketball today.”
While it remains uncertain which point guard Coach Gard was alluding to, there’s reason to believe that Texas transfer Tyrese Hunter was the primary target to fill Hepburn’s shoes. The Wisconsin basketball staff showed interest in the Racine native, who previously played alongside Kamari McGee in high school. However, Hunter ultimately chose to join Penny Hardaway’s program at Memphis, forcing the Badgers to pivot.
Another plan A target for Wisconsin basketball was Stanford forward Brandon Angel, who visited campus and would have been a much-needed plug-and-play option in the frontcourt. The Badgers made a strong push for the graduate transfer, but in the end, Angel chose Oregon.
The chances of all those circumstances going against Wisconsin’s favor seem slim, but the harrowing reality is it happened. If the Badgers are struggling to land their top portal targets, what’s the root cause?
Even though the NIL infrastructure at the University of Wisconsin, through the varsity collective, is a huge feather in their cap that enables student-athletes to make good money during school, transfer portal players appear to be looking for upfront money. From what I’ve gathered, the Badgers don’t seem prepared to compete in that world right now. The open market is essentially pay-for-play, and without up-front cash, it’s a tough sell to a recruit who knows they’ll get a bag somewhere else.
The reality is that Wisconsin basketball either needs to find a way to get the funding they need to get into up-front bidding wars and bring in top portal talents or find players off rosters from lower levels who fit your style of play each season that would come at a more reasonable cost.
There is plenty of time left before the portal window closes, and the Badgers will undoubtedly find some pieces that fit their system. However, there’s no sugarcoating it: Wisconsin basketball isn’t off to a banner start.
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