2022 Record: 20-15 (9-11)

Head Coach: Greg Gard (Career Record 164-94)

Projected Rotation:

PG: Chucky Hepburn (12.2 Pts, 2.8 Reb, 2.8 Ast)

SG: AJ Storr (St. John’s 8.8 Pts, 1.9 Reb, 0.8 Ast)

SF: Connor Essegian (11.7 Pts, 3.7 Reb, 0.7 Ast)

PF: Tyler Wahl (11.3 Pts, 6.3 Reb, 2.5 Ast)

C: Steven Crowl (12.1 Pts, 6.9 Reb, 2.5 Ast)

6: SG Max Klesmit (8.4 Pts, 2.7 Reb, 1.4 Ast)

7: C Gus Yalden

8: PF Nolan Winter

9: SF Carter Gilmore (2.6 Pts, 2.5 Reb, 0.9 Ast)

10: PG Kamari McGee (1.3 Pts, 0.6 Reb, 0.5 Ast)

11: SG Isaac Lindsey (1.5 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.1 Ast)

12: SF Markus Ilver (1.6 Pts, 0.9 Reb, 0.2 Ast)

13: SG John Blackwell

Wisconsin returns 90% of their scoring production last year while also adding a transfer via the portal and brining in a solid recruiting class. AJ Storr from St. John’s was the only transfer the Badgers added this offseason. Storr is a former Top 100 player in the class of 2022 and had an outstanding freshman season with the Red Storm. Storr is a very athletic big guard who averaged 9PPG and 2RPG this past season. He shot 44% from the field overall and a very impressive 40% from beyond the arc. He should step into a starting role for the Badgers this upcoming season. Wisconsin also signed 3 players in the 2023 class. C Gus Yalden is a 4 star and ranked #122 in the country. He should see a decent amount of action this season. PF Nolan Winter is ranked #151 in the country and is another contender to see early action. SG John Blackwell is ranked as the #209 prospect in the country.

Wisconsin returns 3 players from last seasons team that saw minimal action but could be in contention to see more court time this year. Isaac Lindsey is a former walk on who was put on scholarship this past season. Markus Ilver, an Estonia native, had a rough couple seasons but he has the length and potential to make more of an impact this season. Kamari McGee, a former transfer from Green Bay, played in a reserve point guard role with the Badgers last season. He struggled from the field but saw a decent amount of court time towards the end of the season. Carter Gilmore made big strides from his sophomore to his junior season. He even played in 35 games last year making 3 starts. He gave some decent hard fought minutes and averaged 3PPG and 3RPG last season.

The Badgers return their 2 starting frontcourt players with Tyler Wahl and Steven Crowl being back in the fold. Wahl has evolved into a quality big man with Wisconsin and he’s now going into his 5th season. Wahl is an excellent defender on the interior and he will take on more of a leadership role as being the lone 5th year senior on the team. Wahl also passes well for a big man and is continuing to develop a shot from beyond the arc. 7 footer Steven Crowl started all 35 games for Wisconsin last season. Crowl has been a decent three point shooter for his size. He attacks the glass well and defends the interior at a high level as well. Guard Max Klesmit started every game he played in for the Badgers last season. He could see a different role this year with the addition of AJ Storr, but Klesmit still should have a big role on the team. Klesmit is a great shooter who will fit really well in a 6th man role even though there’s a chance he could start over Storr.

Connor Essegian is a player that can have a breakout year for Wisconsin this season. He was very impressive last year have a much better season than the national media expected. Essegian takes the majority of his shots from beyond the arc where he shot 36% from beyond the arc at an average of 6 attempts per game. He’s improving on the defensive end of the ball but his offensive game is terrific. Essegian was one of the most surprising players in the country averaging double figures on a high major team in his freshman season. He was ranked #225 in the country in the 2022 class. Chucky Hepburn is going to be the achilles heel for this Wisconsin team next season. He has started all 68 games in his Wisconsin career improving tremendously from his freshman to sophomore season. He has also become more of a shooter this past year improving his averages from 34% to 40% from three. Hepburn is going to impress many this season and he should evolve into one of the better point guards in the conference.

Wisconsin should be in position to make the tournament this upcoming season after a bit of a disappointing year and a trip to the NIT. The Badgers returned 90% of their production from last season which will be a plus for them. Wisconsin should finish in the Top 5 in the Big 10 this season. They retained enough from last years roster while adding the necessary pieces to field a more competitive team. Wisconsin will be very good on the defensive end of the floor.