The Wisconsin Badgers are one week into the transfer portal, but things have been quieter on that side as the staff continues to do their evaluations to try and find the best fits with the resources available.
Of course, the Badgers have been quite busy looking to retain their top players as well, with efforts going strong there after the losses of John Blackwell and Aleksas Bieliauskas to the transfer portal.
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Still, Wisconsin does have six roster spots and quite a few needs to figure out this offseason, so in our weekly reacts poll, we asked fans which of the needs was the biggest this offseason.
Well, the results showed that there are quite a few, with no consensus at the top.
34 percent of fans said that the team needed a wing, while 26 percent pointed to a combo guard to replace John Blackwell. Another 21 percent said the team needed a true center, while 19 percent of the vote went to point guard.
All four of the answers make sense. A wing feels like Wisconsin’s ‘biggest’ need at this point with the loss of John Blackwell and the addition of Owen Foxwell. The Badgers need someone who can carry much of the scoring load. They’ve found that player in the transfer portal the last three years with AJ Storr, John Tonje, and Nick Boyd. Two of those three played on the wing.
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A combo guard is also a need for this team, and that could change what the Badgers are looking for at the wing. Wisconsin needs a scorer at one of the two positions. At the other, they’d probably prefer more of a three-and-D type (such as a Braeden Carrington or an Andrew Rohde). Wisconsin’s defense wasn’t up to the program’s regular standards last year, so adding players to improve that is key this offseason. Of course, it’d be an added bonus if the Badgers can also add some shooting with the defense to fit their system.
A true center could also be big for the Badgers, although that’s the position that usually comes at the highest cost in the transfer, so Wisconsin will have to budget shop. That could mean looking at a more unproven option or a player looking to transfer up with some production.
Size and physicality are becoming more and more important in college basketball. We’re seeing teams shift their identity to become bigger and more physical because of the extra possessions that are provided in a game. See teams like Michigan, Florida, Arizona, Illinois, Michigan State, and Purdue, who all saw some March Madness success. Even Tennessee, one of two 6+ seeds to make the Elite Eight, was the country’s best offensive rebounding team.
Adding size next to Nolan Winter gives the Badgers more physicality, while still being a quality three-point team that can space the floor and run with tempo. Of course, Austin Rapp is still there, so people may not view that as much of a priority, but the Badgers are looking into adding a big.
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Then comes the point guard position. The Badgers did add Owen Foxwell there, who seems in line to replace Nick Boyd. But they could also go for a backup point guard, for whom there isn’t a clear one on the roster yet.
Currently, the Badgers are far down the list of potential championship winners on FanDuel Sportsbook, having the 32nd-best odds to win the 2027 NCAA National Championship.
This offseason will be key to building off the last few years and capitalizing on the final season of Nolan Winter’s career. We’ll see what the Badgers are able to do after their quiet start to the portal.
